A Singaporean's guide to living in Thailand

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TGIF trivia :p

NAKHON SI THAMMARAT

Locksmiths chomping at the bit to unlock mysterious old vault

THE CONTENTS of a 100-year-old bank vault in the compound of the Thung Song Railway Junction in Nakhon Si Thammarat will have to remain a mystery for a while longer, said Songchai Wongwatcharadamrong, mayor of Thung Song Municipality.

He said a team of locksmiths had been preparing to open the mysterious vault, which is enclosed in a room in an old office building formerly occupied by Siam Commercial Bank, but the plan was suspended by the governor of the State Railway of Thailand (SRT).

The vault is the property of the SRT, said the mayor, who explained that one of the railway authority staff had asked the municipality to find a locksmith to open the vault. He said the vault has four ancient keyholes, which need to be opened at the same time by four keys, but no one knows where to find the keys.
Sitthisak Ruprasert, a locksmith who led the team, said they were certain they could open the vault but it would take three days because only one of the keyholes appears workable. He said it would cost around Bt25,000 to open the vault so as to preserve the keyholes, or they could just be destroyed for 15,000.

Songchai said the vault is located in a spot on the 21-rai area earmarked for preservation under a pilot project to maintain Thung Song's history and culture. The renovation plan is being aided Silpakorn University, he said, while the municipality is gathering data about Thung Song's history.

 

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[h=1]Briton fatally injured after jumping from 2nd floor of departure terminal[/h]
The Nation November 27, 2015 1:18 pm

[h=2]A 35-year-old British tourist was fatally injured after he jumped down from the second floor of the departure terminal of the Suvarnabhumi International Airport.[/h] Police said Beker Edwakb Francis died on his way to hospital shortly after he jumped from the second floor of the terminal at the spot between Gate 3 and Gate 4 at 0:10 am Friday.

Actually, security guards spotted Fransic trying to jump down at Gate 8 Thursday afternoon and took him to the security office to try to calm him down.

The man said he did not have money to buy plane ticket home so the airport officials were trying to contact the British embassy to locate his relatives.

Airport officials told police that the man came out of the office to smoke now and then and security officials always came out with him.

But at 10 minutes after midnight, he came out of the security office to smoke again but this time he ran very fast and jumped down.


[h=2]Irishman jumps to his death at Suvarnabhumi Airport[/h] By Coconuts Bangkok November 27, 2015 / 12:29 ICT
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• 65

A stressed Irishman jumped to his death outside the departure terminal at Suvarnabhumi Airport yesterday after telling airport staff he could not afford a flight home.

According to police, airport staff first spotted the 35-year-old foreigner attempting to jump off the terminal near Gate 8 in the afternoon, so they took him to the tourist police department to calm him down.

The man initially refused to give his information and family’s contact. He kept asking for a smoke break every 10 minutes which were accompanied by airport staff. After he felt relaxed, he finally opened up and told the officers he was from Northern Ireland and wanted to go home but could not afford the THB22,000 flight.

Hours later after the airport staff tried to contact his family and embassy, the progress went no where, so they detained the Irishman because he was stressed out.

At midnight, the man asked for another smoke break before he ran out to the fence between Gate 3 and 4 of the terminal jumped to his death. Staff could not rescue him in time.

The airport staff will contact the UK embassy to send his body back to his hometown, TNN reported.

Without giving a specific number, Suvarnabhumi Airport Director Raweewan Netarakavesana previously said many suicides had occurred since the airport opened seven years ago. In March, a German tourist was captured getting a running start to dive headfirst over the fence from the fourth floor outside the departure terminal.

The airport announced a plan in 2013 to build glass barriers at the terminal's fourth level, where many suicides occurred, but there has been no progress.

 

[Froggy]

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Siam Bayshore Resort in Pattaya. Booked a seaview room on check-in was told they'd sold out all normal seaview rooms so upgraded to suite which also is seaview.

[video=youtube;1jXgtg34WOg]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1jXgtg34WOg[/video]

 

[Froggy]

Re: A Singaporean's guide to living in Thailand ? Feasible?

Dinner at Nang Nual restaurant along Walking Street as usual



Kailan


Crayfish with sambal


Giant prawns with pepper and salt


Live flower crabs


Red bream steamed

 

[Froggy]

Re: A Singaporean's guide to living in Thailand ? Feasible?

Didn't know it's the Pattaya International Firework Festival anyway luck to be in a vantage area watching it over dinner








all the above taken with iPhone

 

[Froggy]

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After a good meal and fireworks its time hit the Walking Street the sleazy part of Pattaya which currently has lots of Chinese tourists

[video=youtube;FJNMpotqqxw]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJNMpotqqxw[/video]

 

[Jah_rastafar_I]

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Protesters tell US ambassador to "go home"

US Ambassador to Thailand Glyn T. Davies. Photo: Reuters

BANGKOK: And you thought you had it tough in your job.

Around 200 people turned up to a protest today at the US Embassy against the new ambassador, just nine weeks into his role.

Led by famous firebrand Thai Buddhist monk Luang Pu Buddha Issara, the protesters held placards saying "This is Thailand, not the USA" and "Go, Go Home" as they accused envoy Glyn T. Davies of seeking to meddle in their affairs, AFP reported.

Some wonderfully welcoming protesters were captured on video yelling, “USA get out!”


Full story: http://bangkok.coconuts.co/2015/11/27/protesters-tell-us-ambassador-go-home


-- Coconuts Bangkok 2015-11-28

 

[yinyang]

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Kow tow to middle kingdom?

DIPLOMACYGovernment weighs up China challenge

Analysis: Beijing's tough stance on rail talks gives regime chance to rebalance ties.

• Bangkok Post Published: 30/11/2015 at 04:30 AM
• Newspaper section: News

Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha wais President Xi Jinping on Nov 9, 2014, at the start of a bilateral Thailand-China meeting at the Great Hall of the People on the sidelines of last year's Apec summit....

China has thrown the military government of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha a curve ball with its tough negotiating stance for the high-speed railway deal. This comes after the government appeared to cleave to Beijing's interests in a series of foreign affairs decisions which critics said showed Bangkok was drawing too close to the superpower.

China's tough stance in the railways talks, ironically, gives the government a chance to assert its self-interest as other negotiating partners in the region have done, observers say. Greater pursuit of self-interest would correct a recent skewing of the relationship in China's favour on the foreign affairs front.

Beijing emphasised the closeness of its ties to Thailand in the aftermath of the 2014 coup, in contrast to the United States and its Western allies, which urged a return to democracy. The government appears to have warmed to the idea, eagerly courting China's investment in its megaprojects and stepping up defence drills.

More recently, it has also met China's request for the deportation of Uighur refugees who sought asylum in Thailand, and even deported two refugees who were registered with the United Nations. Those foreign policy decisions earned criticism from human rights groups which complain the Prayut regime is drawing too close to the superpower, and risks upsetting its other allies.

China's tough stance on the high-speed railway talks appears to have taken the government by surprise, given the work it has done on other fronts to court the superpower.Prime Minister Prayut last week ordered key ministers to go to China for negotiations on the delayed Thai*-China railway project after China set a high interest rate on loans to finance it.

Deputy Transport Minister Ormsin Chivapruck said the prime minister's order came after Chinese authorities quoted the interest rate on its loan to finance the railway project at 2.5%, which is higher than the 2% which Thailand was expecting.
China has also made a new estimate for the project cost, at 500 billion baht -- 100 billion baht higher than the original anticipated cost for the 867km project.

China's actions have caused delays to the project while negotiations have taken place eight times since January but failed to reach a conclusion. Sompop Manarungsan, president of the Panyapiwat Institute of Management and an expert in Thai-Chinese affairs, said the interest rate tussle could affect the China's bid for increased influence in the region.

Increasing its investment footprint through projects, such as the high-speed railway in Thailand, is key to its geopolitical goals.
"China might be wrong if they think we depend on them for infrastructure projects, because Japan is ready to challenge them and counter their offers. Japan is an old friend in Asean and Thailand in terms of investment,'' he said.
Mr Sompop said China has its eye on increasing investment in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Vietnam and Thailand, but bargaining power lies with those Mekong countries as the intended investment destinations.
"It seems only Cambodia is still being a close friend to China in terms of economic cooperation as other countries are starting to consider other choices to maximise their own benefits,'' he said.
"The Thai government should aim to stay independent, as it has no need to run after any particular country. We can stand on our own feet, in spite of international pressure,'' Mr Sompop noted.

Critics of the government's foreign affairs stance towards China might welcome the hiccup over the railway deal, if it encourages the government to pursue greater self-interest. Lately, they say its foreign affairs stance has been too skewed towards China.
The military was forced to defend its deportation of two Chinese refugees to Beijing last week after activists said the refugees were bound to be persecuted on their return.
The refugees were deported after they were arrested for illegal entry into Thailand, National Security Council secretary*-general Thawip Netniyom said. Gen Thawip said that apart from the illegal entry charge, the Thai government was informed by China that the men -- Dong Guangping and Jiang Yefei -- were anti*-Chinese government activists and were involved in human trafficking in their home country.

"The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees only has information that they are activists. It does not know if they have committed human trafficking crimes,'' he said.

Earlier, the government came under attack for deporting 109 members of the Uighur ethnic minority group to China, and another batch to Turkey. Some observers including the then police chief linked the episode to the bomb blasts at the Erawan shrine and Sathon pier in August, noting some of the suspects have Turkish roots and may have plotted the attacks in protest.
Chulalongkorn University's professor of political science Surachart Bumrungsuk said the government's decision to deport the two refugees last week showed it had not learned its lesson from the Uighur saga.

The government's decision to deport the Uighurs to China and Turkey had prompted protests at the Thai honorary consulate in Istanbul, Turkey, later the same month. "This time it's even more sensitive as the two are recognised by the UN, but we don't seem interested. The world is denouncing Thailand for its flip-flop, for not respecting the human rights principles that we preach," Mr Surachart said.

The repatriations confirmed Thailand's lean towards China in foreign affairs, Mr Surachart added, noting the lopsided pro-China policy was a shift from the balanced foreign policies which Thailand observes towards the US.

Thammasat University professor of international relations, Chulacheeb Chinwanno, said Thailand has sought a strategic partnership approach with all the major powers, weighing the benefit of long-term interests on the political, economic, socio-cultural and security fronts.

"But in the past year we appear to have drawn closer with China as we show our keen interest in buying Chinese weapons including submarines and wrangling over the railway deal with China," Mr Chulacheeb said.
He said the Foreign Ministry has to convince the major powers that Thailand is engaging with all countries evenly, rather than favouring any country in particular.

Meanwhile, members of the Thai and Chinese air forces met last week for a joint exercise drill, the first of its kind in Southeast Asia, which shows how close ties have become on the defence front. After the 23-day Falcon Strike exercise ended last Friday, Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwon said the days when Thailand and China might hold a joint exercise for all three armed forces, in the same manner as the grand Thai-US military drill, Cobra Gold, are still some way off, despite the step forward.

"We have not reached a stage where three defence forces participate in the same drill," said Gen Prawit, who is also defence minister.
"But we will focus more on joint research on weapons and national defence-related industry," he said.

As minister, Gen Prawit has led military leaders to visit China four times to strengthen ties between the countries.
He is aware of criticism that the government has been cosying up to China in defence and foreign affairs, but denies the claim.
"We stay neutral and make friends with all countries," he said.
"Don't say we have tried harder with China because the two countries have always had a good relationship."

 

[Froggy]

Re: A Singaporean's guide to living in Thailand ? Feasible?

Bee tai bak 老鼠粉 fishball soup by the roadside

 

[Froggy]

Re: A Singaporean's guide to living in Thailand ? Feasible?

Saw the fireworks on Friday and went back to same restaurant to catch it again on Saturday night. Lots and lots of fireworks for 2 hours I think.

Lobster cheese


Calimari


Kailan mushrooms


Crayfish again - my farang friends seems to like it very much


Steamed seabass


Scallops with cheese

 

[Froggy]

Re: A Singaporean's guide to living in Thailand ? Feasible?

Lunch at Nathong restaurant

Tanghoon with prawn


Snowfish with horfun


Tomyam groupa

 

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Re: A Singaporean's guide to living in Thailand ? Feasible?

Pub and restaurant near Fashion Island



Seahum


Chicken tomyam


Bitter gourd leaves


Deep fried kampong chicken


Cabbage with fish sauce

 

[yinyang]

Buffet for monkeys in Lop Buri

Monkeys enjoy the 27th annual buffet festival on Sunday at Phra Prang Sam Yot in Lop Buri's Muang district. Locals and tourists bring food and drinks for the primates, making them more tame and familiar with people.
According to the Lop Buri Monkey Foundation, more than 4,000 monkeys are living in the central province. The monkey population is one of the popular tourist attractions in Lop Buri, but many of them are wild and are often accused of stealing bags, hats and food from tourists. (Photos by Pattarapong Chatpattarasill)

http://www.bangkokpost.com/photo/photo/779521/buffet-for-monkeys-in-lop-buri

 

[Froggy]

Pump price in Bangkok today

Diesel
95 benzene
95 gasohol
91 gasohol

 

[Jah_rastafar_I]

http://bumres.blogspot.sg/2012/10/lulivo-italian-restaurant-review.html

[h=2]Wednesday, October 10, 2012[/h] [h=3]L'ulivo Italian Restaurant Review - Narathiwas Soi 7, Bangkok[/h]
L'ULIVO Italian Restaurant
Traditional Italian Cuisine - Grilled Seafood Platter

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Overall Score 8/10
Taste 3.5/5
Ambiance 5/5
Service 5/5
Value 3/5

The name of this Italian restaurant is L’ulivo, which I assumed it is read Lu-Li-Vo. In Italian, the name refers to an Olive tree. The L’ulivo is considered to be the Hi end Italian restaurant, located in the Sathorn Narathiwas area. The head chef was once interviewed in a food magazine, where article was sharing interesting story of the chef. So, my eating buddy and I had to check it out. The L’ulivo has been in business for just over a year, resided in a beautiful small home at the tip of the Soi Narathiwas 7. When you turn right into the Soi, look to your right. It is very easy to find. There is a parking lot in the Soi 7 right past the restaurant to the right. The house is painted in bright yellow, sitting right behind a huge tree (not sure if it was an olive tree). With the light glowing through the window of the house and on the front façade, I could already tell that this Italian restaurant is perfect for a romantic dinner with the special someone. Since I was with a dude, I had to mood for romantic.


During the lunch time, L’ulivo is also serving special set lunch for the working crowd in the Sathorn area. There are three choices at lunch time; 1, 2, or 3 course set. The prices are 310, 360, and 430 baht respectively. Since I was there for dinner, I could only look in the lunch menu. The lunch menu actually had quite a bit of selection, more than most fine Italian restaurants. If I were working in this area, I would definitely check it out. At dinner time, L’ulivo has fewer selections in the menu but you will find all Italian specialties you can think of, except pizza. Average price for the main dishes are between 300-500 baht.

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I mentioned earlier in the review that the Chef/owner at L’ulivo @ Bangkok had the shining aura. Well, he surely earned it. His name is Danilo Aiassa and he was born and raised in Italy. He began his cooking career since High School. For over a decade, he had been collecting gourmet cooking experiences in three different Michelin starred restaurants in France. Prior to the start up of his own Italian restaurant, he was the Head-chef at the Biscotti @ Four Seasons Hotel Bangkok. I have been to this fine Italian restaurant twice and I really enjoyed it. Not too long before my visit, chef Danilo invited a friend who owns a 1-star Michelin guide restaurant in Italian to the L’ulivo. For one week chef’s good friend prepared a five course dinner with 3 glasses of wine. I was told that the L’ulivo was completely booked and customers were impressed with the meal. The chef told me that he will invite friends to create special dishes again. I won’t miss it next time for sure.

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I personally don’t have much experience and knowledge about Italian food. I wouldn’t be able to tell the differences between Modern, Traditonal, or Contemporary precisely. So, I had to ask the chef; he mentioned that the L’ulivo mainly serves the traditional style Italian food. I wouldn’t be able to distinguish because some of the dishes were beautifully presented, just like a modern style.

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At L’ulivo, customers will be welcomed with two complimentary. The first was the Italian freshly baked bread. The second was three choices of small starters, which were a mushroom soup, mini burger, and a cocktail bite. All of which were delicious, especially the mushroom soup; it was perfectly hot and savory.




Shortly after the complimentary, our choice was the Pumpkin soup with shrimp. The taste was light, though I could sense the pumpkin and seafood aroma mixed together. If it was served a hot as the mushroom soup in the complimentary, it would be perfect. I honestly thought it was a good soup but my friend liked the presentation more than the flavoring.

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The first of the main course was the Assorted grilled crustaceans and fish with mixed vegetables – tiger prawns, river prawns, red snapper, sea bass, squid, and rock lobster (950 baht). Its size was quite large, definitely big enough for sharing with a couple of friends. This menu is popular at lunch time on Saturday. We had a couple of sauces given in the set; one was a buttery basil sauce and the other was a special carrot sauce. This whole seafood set felt like the Thai seafood platter, except there was no spicy and tangy Thai seafood chili sauce. I must admit that I thought about the Thai sauce. Since it was a fine Italian dinner, I was actually enjoying the carrot sauce in the traditional Italian mood.

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The other main dish was also an assortment of the meat (also 950 baht). We had grass fed rib eyes, beef tenderloin, baby chicken, fresh sausages, and bacon; all were grilled over the charcoal with volcano rocks. The presentation of this dish was similar to the seafood assortment. Overall, the meats and the vegetables were nicely grilled. The grilled meat had the average quality. I liked the sausage the most. It tasted really rare; must be homemade. With the rich meat texture and the charcoal aroma, it was the highlight of this meat platter. The beef cuts were fair, enjoyable with the red wine. ​

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The other main dish at L’ulivo Italian restaurant was a pasta, the Home made spaghetti Chitara with king crab, yellowtails from Adriatic sea and sautéed artichokes (450 baht). One remarkable point about this dish was the spaghetti. It is homemade in the kitchen every other day. I found the texture to be quite interesting. Since it was handmade, the consistency of the spaghetti became the charm. The pasta sauce lacked balance a bit; it was leaning on the salty side. However, the contexts in the sauce were incredible. The crab and the fish were fresh and tasty.

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For desserts at L’ulivo, we had the Sicilian cannoli with dark chocolate and ricotta cheese, candit and dry fruit (270 baht). Its cone shape shell-like Cannoli is something I have seen before; usually it is filled with cream but this one had chocolate and cheese in it. The taste was rather strange at first. I really like the texture impression. It was a nice variety. The shell was crispy and inside was a mix of nutty, chocolaty, and creamy texture. I surprisingly ate the whole thing, mostly by myself.


The other dessert was the Chocolate Lava. It was a show piece, tastefully done and stunning looking. My friend who is a tough judge on dessert actually commented that it was one of the best Chocolate Lava. The inclusion of the banana and the quality vanilla icecream was a plus. Thumbs up on this fine sweet ending.

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The L’ulivo Italian Restaurnat @ Narathiwas Soi 7 is surely a fine place to enjoy the traditional style Italian food in Bangkok. Decorated with the luxurious country home vibe, the atmosphere was quite romantic. The wall murals were beautiful, emphasized the European setting. The table service was nearly flawless. It was a rainy day on my visit and there were still a few other parties in the restaurant. The L’ulivo would be a great choice to spend quality time with your special someone while enjoying the goodness of traditional Italian cooking by the honorable Italian Chef, Da Danilo.

For more yummy review of Bangkok restaurants please Click Here!

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[Froggy]

In Bangkok when craving for a quick Japanese meal forget about Fuji and Zen and the other mediocre local wannabes - go for Kasa http://kasa.co.th/contact-us.php?lang=en

Kasa is a more up market but inexpensive Japanese restaurant serving food closer to Japanese taste rather than Thai

Sushi






Salmon salad


Seaweed salad


Snow fish


Hokkae set




Sashimi

 

[yinyang]

... quick Japanese meal forget about Fuji and Zen and the other mediocre local wannabes - go for Kasa http://kasa.co.th/contact-us.php?lang=en
Kasa is a more up market but inexpensive Japanese restaurant serving food closer to Japanese taste rather than Thai

Spot on. Did Kasa 1st time in Circle Ratchapruk Village (surburban mall), and was impressed by menu. Frequented few outlets in other malls, like Seascon Bangkae. Quality way better than likes Fuji/Zen, and affordable

 

[yinyang]

AVIATION SAFETY

FAA Drops the hammer
FAA downgrades Thai aviation

• Bangkok Post Published: 1/12/2015 at 08:42 PM
• Online news:

The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has downgraded Thailand’s aviation sector, setting the stage for possible worldwide bans of Thai-registered airlines.
"A reassessment in July 2015 found that Thailand did not meet international standards," the US regulation agency said a statement posted on its website on Tuesday.
"Today's announcement follows ongoing discussions with the government of Thailand which concluded on Oct 28," it added.

The decision means Thailand has dropped to Category 2 from Category 1, increasing odds that Thai carriers will be subjected to service curtailments or outright bans not only in the US, but Europe and Asia.

Thailand had been rated on Category 1 since 1997. That status allowed Thai-registered carriers to fly to the US and launch new services.
"With a Category 2 rating, Thailand's carriers can continue existing service to the United States. They will not be allowed to establish new service to the United States," the FAA said.

The FAA previously downgraded the Philippines to Category 2 and imposed a complete flight ban on its airlines. The European Union, through its European Aviation Safety Agency, traditionally follows the FAA's lead. That agency used an FAA downgrade of Indonesia's aviation-safety standards to impose a total flight ban on that country's airlines for several years.

The EASA, which also recently audited Thailand's aviation system, will release the results of its investigation on Dec 15.
Ironically, the only Thai carrier to serve the United States, Thai Airways International, ended all flights to North America on Oct 25 due to intense competition on transpacific routes and the airline's ongoing cost-cutting plans to drop unprofitable routes.

The downgrade followed the audit by the FAA in July and the US agency had sent the results to the US embassy in Thailand.
The FAA's move came after the Montreal-based International Aviation Organisation (ICAO) had given Thailand a red flag on June 18 after the country could not meet its standards for regulating aviation businesses and granting air operator certificates.

The FAA inspections found the same results that Thailand does not comply with the ICAO standards.

 

[yinyang]

AVIATION SAFETY

Govt braces for Europe air downgrade
Authorities scramble to solve safety woes

• Bangkok Post Published: 3/12/2015 at 03:30am

The government is scrambling to rectify aviation safety woes after the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) downgraded Thailand's air safety rating, six months after the kingdom was red-flagged by the UN's global air traffic agency.

Thai authorities have also been on tenterhooks as the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) is scheduled to announce the results of its audit of the country's aviation safety standards next Thursday.
Rumours of possible European Union (EU) trade sanctions caused a sell-off in local airline and hotel stocks and a 1.3% tumble on the Stock Exchange of Thailand main index yesterday.


The panic also prompted Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha and other top government officials to try and calm the public, saying the FAA downgrade would hurt the Thai aviation industry's credibility rather than the economy as a whole.
The junta chief urged Thais to "unite to solve the problem and bring peace to the country".

• PM's urgent order: Fix this problem NOW!
• Editorial: Aviation crisis looms
• The power of rumour: Stock exchange hit by 'Europe downgrade' reports

Somkid Jatusripitak, deputy prime minister for economic affairs, said he had instructed Transport Minister Arkhom Termpittayapaisith to oversee efforts to tackle the problems.

"We have to admit that Thailand's aviation industry does not meet international standards. The Transport Ministry and the Office of Civil Aviation are duty-bound to turn this crisis into an opportunity to improve the country's aviation industry," Mr Somkid told an unscheduled news conference, also attended by Mr Arkhom, who was forced to cancel a scheduled visit to Laos.

Airline safety regulators around the world often take their cue from FAA safety rulings, and any further downgrades or blacklisting by EASA would deal a direct and more damaging blow to the Thai aviation industry, given that dozens of Thai-registered airlines fly direct between Bangkok and numerous European cities daily.

The downgrade followed a "red flag" issued in June by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) for "significant safety concerns" raised after the now-defunct Department of Civil Aviation failed to meet its standards for regulating aviation businesses and granting air operator certificates within a 90-day deadline. These failures have not yet been rectified.
Mr Somkid refused to speculate on EASA's decision, but said Thai Airways International Plc (THAI) should have back-up plans to deal with any adverse impacts.

Mr Arkhom said his ministry is stepping up efforts to tackle the safety concerns pinpointed by the ICAO and will use the findings of the FAA, EASA and the Japan Civil Aviation Bureau as guidelines to rectify the problems and improve Thailand's aviation safety standards.

It will also quickly find enough qualified personnel to enforce air safety rules in line with international standards, Mr Arkhom said.
He said Thailand was in the process of reissuing certifications to 28 airlines that fly internationally, as well as inspecting the licences of more than 2,300 pilots to comply with standards set out by the ICAO.

The process is expected to be completed by next August. The "red flag" will be removed if all the safety concerns raised by the ICAO are addressed, Mr Arkhom said. He added that Thailand had submitted plans to the ICAO to address the safety concerns and the agency has already approved them.

Regarding EASA's audit, Mr Arkhom said EASA emphasises measures to ensure enough personnel, while the FAA focuses on air operator licence certification.
"The results of EASA's audit remain to be seen, but they should be positive," Mr Arkhom said.

But the research unit of Siam Commercial Bank thinks otherwise.
The SCB Economic Intelligence Centre (EIC) said EASA audit results are usually in line with the FAA's.
The EIC cited the FAA's downgrade of Indonesia's aviation safety rating in April 2007 followed by EASA's ban in June on Indonesian airlines from flying to European countries, and the FAA's demotion of the Philippines' air safety rating in 2008 before the EASA banned Philippine carriers from entering the EU in 2010.

However, the EIC said THAI is the only Thai-registered airline flying to Europe and it has obtained the International Air Transport Association's Operational Safety Audit certification. In light of this, THAI may still be allowed to fly to Europe, as is the case with Indonesia, with four Indonesian-registered airlines exempted from the EASA blacklist and allowed to fly to Europe, the EIC said.

A possible thumbs-down for Thailand's aviation safety standards by EASA would have far-reaching effects on THAI and Bangkok Airways, both of which are heavily reliant on the European market where EASA's rules are in force. That means THAI would not be allowed to introduce new routes to Europe, boost existing European-bound routes or change the type of aircraft.

A senior THAI executive, who asked to remain anonymous, said THAI has a contingency plan in place to deal with the possible worst-case scenario in the event that EASA decides to impose restrictions.

With THAI in rehabilitation mode, the airline, which operates regular flights to 12 European cities from Bangkok, has no plans to introduce new European routes or to ramp up existing flights, nor change aircraft types, so the damage would be manageable, he added. THAI also has a host of European airline partners, under code-sharing agreements, as well those of the Star Alliance airlines, which feed their passengers to routes operated by THAI. Europe is an important market for cash-strapped THAI from which about a quarter of its annual revenue is derived.

Despite not having its own direct flights to Europe, Bangkok Airways has six European carriers as its code-share partners including British Airways and Air France which transfer significant numbers of their long-haul inbound passengers to Bangkok Airways' domestic and regional networks.

Bangkok Airways foresees few effects arising from the FAA downgrade because it does not operate flights to the US, nor does it have any operating flight partnerships with American carriers or international airlines linked with them, an airline executive said yesterday.