thaiowl

From Khao Sod:

"He said he was wearing Great Garuda amulet, surrounded by tiny diamonds, at the time
of the accident, which he believed contributed to his miraculous survival. "

One reason that I applied for (and was granted) Permanent Residence (PR) many years ago was that I was convinced that Thailand would gradually make it more difficult for foreigners to live here long term. This has come to pass and the laborious PR application process was a reasonable price to pay,

Keep the masses ignorant, subservient, docile and frightened and you can get away with anything.

Like 2011

As opposed to what happened in Thailand in 2011:

"The size and scope of the 2011 flood can, in part, be attributed to the low rainfall of the 2010 monsoon season. Dam levels hit record lows on June 2010.^[52] The evidence shows that early in the season the dams collected large amounts of water building reserves and buffering early flooding.^[52] The scale of the rainfall of 2011 is evidenced by the quantity of water collected behind Bhumibol Dam. Over eight billion cubic meters of water were collected in three months, filling this dam to capacity.^[53] Once at capacity, continuing rains forced officials to increase flows from the dams despite increasing flooding and this led to accusations that the dams were mismanaged early in the monsoon season.^[54] However, the counter argument is that had the monsoon season for 2011 been short and the dam levels not built up, that even lower levels than 2010 would have been mismanagement too. "

On 6/20/2018 at 9:17 AM, cnx355 said:

The platform can handle 6 cars train.  

 

That is why originally there were 3 car trains.

 

They could be coupled together in rush hours 

 

With 4 cars train the maximum use of the platform could never be reached.

 

 

Years ago (maybe 2012), when the BTS was becoming overcrowded, people were asking why the trains only had four carriages when the platforms were designed to accommodate six-carriage trains. I remember the Head of PR for BTS wrote a letter to the Bangkok Post confirming that six-carriage trains had been ordered from China and would be operational by the end of 2013. I wonder what happened?

Remember the incident well. The joke at the time that one of the fairways at the nearby airport golf course was renamed "The Qantas Approach".

1 hour ago, Grouse said:

My son had to spend several years flying in West Papua using Cessna Caravans to build hours before getting an A320 type rating. At least he is real aviator though. I never slept well during that time.

 

Be wary of low cost airlines that allow P2F. Here you can pay the airline to sit in the RH seat to build hours. These airlines should be forced to declare that fact.

Sounds like Susi Air..proper flying! My son flies for a low cost airline in Thailand and loves it. Great company to work for.

My friend travels from Nonthaburi to Bangkok and back every day. I reckon it takes her a total of at least 3 hours per day. Assuming she goes to work 228 days every year, 3 hours driving per day = 684 hours per year = 28.5 days per year. Nearly one whole month!

The Lion Air 737 uses the CFM Leap engine. This is the same type of engine that had a problem on a Thai Air Asia A320Neo flight from Macao to Don Muang in March. These new engines have had teething problems https://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/cfm-reviews-fleet-after-finding-leap-1a-durability-i-442669/

1 hour ago, jayboy said:

This is also my experience.I'm puzzled however by the reference to a special card.I thought there was just a small stamp in the passport of PRs who had registered for machine read entry.

They just put a small sticker in your passport which confirms you are allowed to use the automatic barriers (the sticker also has the expiry date as well).

Last month, I applied to use the automatic barriers (I have PR).You can register to use the automatic barriers at Suvarnabhumi and Don Muang by completing an application form and supplying the following signed documents:

1. Copy of Passport (photograph page and current visa page)

2. Copy of Residence Book (pages 1-5 and current endorsement page)

3. Copy of Alien Book (relevant pages)

4. Copy of Tabien Baan

5. Copy (signed) of Reference’s ID card

On the application form, they require a “Reference in Kingdom”. I just used my wife’s details and brought along a signed copy of her Thai ID. You can only register at Suvarnabhumi when you are departing on an international flight. After passing through passport control, go to the main immigration desk with the application form and supporting documents. The immigration officer will process your application, put a small sticker in your passport saying you can use the automatic barriers, take your photo and fingerprints so the barrier can recognize you, and that’s it. The whole process took about 25 mins. Permission is granted for two years. This could be very useful given the huge queues that sometimes plague Suvarnabhumi and Don Muang.

51 minutes ago, geriatrickid said:

I'm genuinely excited by this possibility as it would make so many people's lives easier, because of the ability to avoid BKK. Unfortunately, these secondary routes with only one airline have a habit of pricing significantly higher than if the destination is a hub. 

 

Back in 2016 we were told there was to be a widening  of the runway;

http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/hua-hin-airport-expanded-accommodate-larger-aircraft/

Never happened. I hope this is not more pie in the sky.

Although FD uses  AB 320's, the airline  is renewing its fleet with a change to the AB 320 Neo which will result in greater fuel efficiency making  additional routes  more viable.

(Fuel is the single greatest cost for a flight.)

 

 

I get your point but consider this: Many of the people who will take those flights will forgo driving to  Hua Hin. That means fewer buses and cars taking them there. At the end of the day, remember that the  AB320 only seats  240. At best there might be a daily flight. at 70%-80% capacity  that's under 200 people, and not disruptive.  People taking these flights will be .of a different  demographic than  what you describe. The kind of people who  are  hanging around the ghetto are the  short time budget tourists and loser segment. That district is slowly dying out anyway. It was dead after 11 pm last night and the week before on my way to and from Coco51 I cut through to the wat and the area was  sputtering. Don't worry about this.

FD's A320's have 180 seats.

1 minute ago, Wanderlust said:

So while the possible Chiang Mai route would not be operated by Air Asia X, it would still be possible for their A330 to use Hua Hin. What I have heard is the issue though is the lack of equipment enabling the planes to land in poor visibility/conditions, some kind of system that allows planes to lock on to their landing path (sorry don't know the technical name). I believe this is required for long haul larger jets?

Will ask my son...he's a pilot with Thai Air Asia! I think the equipment you are referring to is the Instrument Landing System (ILS).

Have had a 10m x 5m inground saltwater pool for the last 22 years. They are indeed a labour of love and money. Most equipment is imported and therefore expensive, as are spare parts. Once you really understand how it works, you can keep on top of it. There are many local "experts" but I have found many know very little. Make sure your pipes are accessible, making them easy to fix in the event of leaks. Any screws/washers exposed to the water should be stainless steel (as I have learned to my cost). I quite enjoy maintaining my pool, but sometimes it gets a bit wearing when things go wrong.

2 hours ago, faraday said:

Another excellent & well thought out idea.
Clearly some people on this thread haven't woken up yet.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Indeed!!!

13 hours ago, Argus Tuft said:

Well spotted.  Cannot be Air Asia X.  Not possible!  Besides they do not do short haul domestic sectors.

Hua Hin airport runway is 2,100m long and can accommodate an A320 (which requires 1,971m). The Hua Hin - Chiang Mai route would be operated by Thai Air Asia (using an A320), not Air Asia X, which as you correctly pointed out, is a long-haul operator that uses A330 (requiring 2,070m of runway).

2 hours ago, bikerlou47 said:

I live in the beautiful area of Khao Yai. I ride several KM each week, I force my self not to look down at the sides of the road, garbage everywhere.

Not to throw garbage on the ground takes a certain maturity level which many Thai's do not possess! 

I ride my bike every day in Hua Hin and encounter the same problem of garbage on the road road verges...it is absolutely appalling and is the shame of Thailand. The locals have no pride and just do not care. I pick up litter every day and now the bike lane is free from litter. It breaks your heart to see  the country trashed in this way.

I have the same device for use when I'm on my bike. I also carry a taser, the noise of which scares the life out of any dog.

4 hours ago, Orton Rd said:

It's like a Jumbo jet crashing every week, year after year

In 2017, there were only 44 deaths due to plane crashes, making it the safest year in history.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/comment/2017-was-the-safest-year-in-aviation-history/

I bought a Dog Dazer from Amazon...it emits an inaudible sound that the dog hears. I have used it but have never been attacked so can't vouch for its effectiveness. I also carry a taser (see attached) which crackles and scares the crap of of dogs. The Dog Dazer is clipped to my waist and the taser is in a pouch attached to my bike with cable ties.

 

Notice that these girls have the ubiquitous "branding" where their lower leg has touched the exhaust pipe of the motor cycle.

I ride a bike every day and always take a Dog Dazer (ultrasonic dog deterrent) and a taser I bought at the market. The noise of the taser frightens the life out of dogs (and humans).

14 hours ago, ELVIS123456 said:

All Captains with Air Asia are qualified and trained in Australia like your son - what a load of (deleted).

 

That's why I put "trained in Australia" in brackets because it referred specifically to my son. Without the brackets, the post would read:

My son is a pilot with Air Asia (not Air Asia X who fly A330) and he is very capable and qualified, as are all the Captains he flies with.