Virgil

All I know is that when Australians maintained all Qantas Frames and that included minor, major and deep level services (DLM overhauls) there were no problems what so ever. Now that most major services and DLM's are outsources to the lowest bidders out side of Australia we are seeing the result of this cost cutting.

Avoid flying Qantas for now, well until one crashes then thing may go back to the good old days after the finger pointing game ends.

1-fuh, you don't know what you're talking about. Aircraft maintanence is done as checks: A Check, B Check, C Check and D Check. Aircraft Maintenance

In the general aviation industry there is no such thing as a "DML overhaul". In fact, the only reference I can find relates to the Australian military and appears to be a localised term.

Virgil, Out!

Wounder if they will pin the blaim on Rolls Royce again

Naahh most of 747 fleet is equipped with PW engines...(Pratt & Witney)

All of QF's B747 fleet are powered by Rolls Royce RB211s.

That's right BKKBrit. Qantas has preferred RR since the days of the old 707 V-Jets. On the 747-400 aircraft I believe they are using the RR RB211-524G-T. However, they use GE Engines on their 747-400ER aircraft, of which they have 6 (VH-OEE to VH-OEJ) Here is the link to the Qantas 747-400 Longreach specs:

Qantas 747-400 Longreach and Qantas 747-400ER

This little piece is interesting too:

Qantas Loses Another Rolls Royce Engine

Cheers,

Virgil

They must have stayed up all nite the think of that.

Well I was !!! ... I just couldn't fathom how changing the way eggs are sold from the dozen to the kilo was going to save me or anyone else any money. I mean, if you want a dozen eggs at 65g each you've got to buy 780g of eggs. Whether it be by the dozen or kilo, it is still 780g of eggs ....... then it hit me ....... we can all count up to twelve ..... but few of us (if any) ever check the accuracy of the scales. The scales, I'm sure, will demonstrate clearly that 11 x 65 = 780 !!!

Cheers folks

V.

PS: Yes, I'm still around, even though I haven't posted here for around twelve months.

Being at least 18 floors high the lifts will run on cable with a counter weight. These lifts have two safety measures that I'm aware of: the first is a clutch that is held open by a solenoid. No power and the clutch closes causes a breaking effect. They also have an over-speed system, which could be either hydraulic or mechnical (never electrical because it is meant to activate in the event of no power). Basically, when the system gets too fast hydraulic fluid is pumped into a ram that has a breaking effect. My understanding is that these won't actually stop a heavily loaded lift, just slow it down to a life-saving speed.

I'm not condoning the price of the fare, nor am I advocating violence, there is no excuse to assault anyone. However, tourists get ripped off the world over. I've been ripped of in Zimbabwe, USA, England, France (dam_n French), Japan, Hong Kong and New Zealand (where a gas station charged me $50 + the cost of the gas to fill up on a Sunday - gotta love the Kiwis ... I never saw that one coming). As a tourist I know this is going to happen to me and I plan for it.

I don't think it's right, but I put up with it, and I plan for it.

The agreed price was 150bt - thats US$4.50. Mr Anwar only wanted to pay 100bt - $3.00, but he'd already agreed to pay 150bt. In Australia, renigging on a gentleman's agreement would probably get him a punch in the face too! So, for $1.50, the dishonourable Mr Anwar got punched in the face. I note the medical bill was 2000bt - $60.00. Well, he's lucky he wasn't Japan or the US, where he could have tacked another zero onto the bill.

So far, Mr Anwar is out of pocket $61.50. A week in Rome could see him lose a whole lot more than that!!!

Now, I'm not supporting the Tuk-Tuk driver, but lets look at his side of the story. These guys work 12-14 hour shifts, 2/3 of it under that hot Thai sun. No a/c on a Tuk-Tuk! How much PROFIT would these guys make each day? $20? $30? ... Lets be generous and say they make $50 ... on a 12 hour day that's only around $4 per hour. They do it tough ... you don't find too many Tuk-Tuk drivers on vacation in Canada or Europe. Look at the clothes they wear and the houses they live in. This Tuk-Tuk driver is going to court. He'll be fined. He might have to pay Mr Anwar's costs. If he has form he might even do time. What affect is that going to have on his family income? He'll be paying this off for weeks. A Tuk-Tuk driver's PROFIT is the bit left over after he pays for his licence, fuel, bribe to work certain streets, etc. When his fee is cut from 150bt to 100bt his profit was probably cut from 70bt to 20bt ... maybe even less.

This is a very sad story - for 50bt - $1.50. To me, both parties are in the wrong. I seem to remember a similar incident in BKK a few years back where an English or Irish tourist was stabbed over a similar incident. That 50bt is SO IMPORTANT to a poor family.

Let's paint a different picture for a minute. Imagine that Mr Anwar arrived at his hotel by Tuk-Tuk and paid a 50bt tip instead. He could boast about tipping the Tuk-Tuk driver and talk about his great holiday in Thailand. The Tuk-Tuk driver would be the happiest driver in Phuket. His profit for that trip doubled. For Mr Anwar, his $5000 holiday to Phuket would cost him an extra $1.50 .... hmmm .... $5001.50 .... does it really matter?

$1.50 Mr Anwar, it was $1.50.

Many of these drugs are not for consumption by local Thai and tourists. They're destined for Singapore, Australia and New Zealand. Thailand is simply on the way.

The Thai police let themselves down again and again. Perhaps the men should have bribed them ... works for me!

It was not a Boing 737

It was a McDonnell Douglas MD82

Yeah, Yeah ... I was thinking of Air Asia and corrected my post as soon as I saw the footage. MD-82 .... I remember when airlines around the world were ordering the DC-9 like they were hamburgers .... !

Virgil, Out!

Does anyone know the type of plane?

Oops! I was thinking of Air Asia for a minute ... Here's a link to 1 2 Go Fleet info. http://www.fly12go.com/en/about_us/fleet_info.shtml

While the MD-82 is an old plane, EVERYONE should be aware that the three biggest causes of air disasters are human maintenance (pilot or other), poor maintenance, and poor weather. I don't think they are going to find that the age of the aircraft played a significant part in the accident.

Virgil, Out!

This convicted murderer is only 24! Then he should be spending the rest of his natural life in prison which I feel is a far worse punishment than the death penalty! It's been proven that the death penalty is no deterrent for violent crime!

There's my 2 cents!

I agree ... and he needs to hear the names of those girls ... and see their pictures daily ... so that he never, never forgets.

I've said it before ... Thais can't drive!!!

What about holidays in the Christmas time 20 dec to 01 january . Does enybody know about them ? Im comming down to sell my house. Too bad if land and department office are cloased due to my week down there.

Thanks for a reply

Remember that Thailand is a Buddhist Country. Christmas is for commercial reasons only here (as it is now back home, whever that may be). Last year on Christmas Day, my Rubbish (Trash) was collected as normal by the council bin men and all the children went to School locally.

Now lets talk of New Year, and that is when EVERYTHING stops in Thailand for days and days.

Thailand is a Buddhist Country .... for now. The people who lead the coup are actually Muslim ... yes, the Thai military is Muslim lead ... lets see what happens now.

virgil, out!

And now ladies and gentlemen, watch as this ill-educated, muslim, fundamentalist military dictatorship pulls the Thai economy apart - nut by nut, bolt by bolt.

Virgil, Out!

Today’s decision of junta appointed court is the worst possible. It makes no sense to talk about legal aspects of the decision taking into account the illegal nature of junta and all institutions it created. But the decision also lacks the elementary logic. The actions of accused two members of Thai Rak party were the result of existing at the time election regulations and the decision of democrats to boycott the elections. In other words, the action of Thai Rak were the implication of the action of Democrats. Another charge regarding dissolution of the parliament is totally absurd: khun Thaksin faced mass demonstrations. He wanted to introduce the state of emergency but it was denied by military commanders. The dissolution of the parliament was a natural step: he simply asked for a new mandate from the electorate. I would characterize the court decision as a farce. Sonthi could simply disband TRT immediately after the coup with the same degree of “legality and logic”.

The general public was willing to accept a more balanced decision: banning certain leading figures in both parties from the political activities for 5 years but keeping parties intact. It would open up the possibility for fair elections in December. Phony elections without the participation of the most popular political party will not resolve deep political crisis in Thailand.

I think we all can agree to one thing: Thailand needs certain degree of stability. The practical question now what are stable equilibria which are attainable from the current political situation. A related question: what are practical ramifications of the current decision. First of all, Sonthi does not look like a man who suppose to retire in three monthes ( I remind that he is planned to retire from his Army post in September).

I found especially amazing the introduction of the so-called Pitak emergency plan. Two major differences between this plan and the previous one: it provides participation of the Army ( and not just a police) in handling emergency situations and secondly Sonthi is in charge of the implementation of the plan. Looks like a typical power grabbing to me.

I personally would not mind if such a plan would have been implemented in deep South. But apparently Sonthi see more enemies in BKK rather than in deep South ( and , in fact, it can be very true in his own case).

It is, of course, not a secret that the major power base for Democrats is in the South (even during landslide victories of TRT in national elections democrats easily carried this region). Interestingly, the major support the junta gets nowdays is in exactly the same region.

General Sonthi is also Southerner ( and muslim as , of course, very well known).

The court ruling create a greater regional division in Thailand between South and North.

Of course, such a division always existed and has deep historical roots but the court ruling elevate it to qualitatively new level. If such division become evident in Armed forces, it may lead to far reaching consequences. Overall, propagation of such division is extremely dangerous and may lead to very serious problems (to put it mildly)

So, what are “stability options” available for Thailand? As I said, phony elections without a participation of the most popular party cannot bring a stability. Thus, I see only two.

• Popular uprising with swift return to the Constitution of 1997 and fair elections within 6 monthes.
  

• Military dictatorship of Burma type.
  

Somehow, I do not see any signs that the first option is viable. Thus, let us consider the second option. In my opinion, Burma is relatively stable. Of course, it is boycotted by many countries but manage to exist in relative isolation. The major reason for that is the abundance of mineral resources in Burma and availability of several reliable clients (like China and Russia) who are interested in exploiting these resources and supply Burma with everything it needs. Still, overall, the living standards in Burma are quite low. Unfortunately, Thailand has very limited natural resources. It is a global player which depends to significant extent on tourism, export and foreign investments. Nevertheless, Burmese option is possible but the general Thai population would need to accept much lower living standards.

Overall, this sad day manifests, in my view the last Hurrah of Thai elite and, in some sense, demonstrates the degree of its degeneration.

I stand by my (albeit very pessimistic) scenario

I'm standing there with you, Mumba.

Virgil, Out!

justice has been done. Toxin, his family and his croies have pocketted a bit too much to be forgotten. Toxin is out and forever!

Time for a new Toxin has come... next page of the Thai history.

So what's next now? A continuation [consolidation] of the vacuum or shall we go ahead? And with what? Thailand, wake up and see what's going on under your feet before it's too late. Start from square one and open your eyes this time, you may not have a second chance to start with a brand new white page.

What an ill-informed response! The north and north east prospered under Thaksin. Already the economy in these areas is beginning to slump. And to infer that replacing a democratically elected government with a Muslim Military Dictatorship is just .... well ... dumb!

Virgil, Out!

> The least they could have done is sorted out the logic of their decisions!

There isn't any. They tried to hide it but I think it's clear to all that this verdict was a done deal and handed down from above to judge Somchai.

Keep in mind, the military doesn't WANT stability. They actually want people in the North and North East to boycott (or vote against) the next constitution.. keeps them in power.

It's been an exceptionally sad day for Thailand, and you know what: we've not hit rock bottom yet.

Yes, the worst is yet to come. The North and North East is also the Buddhist stronghold. Expect more hardship from the current Muslim government as they begin converting the country politically, economically and spiritually. As they say, "The skidroads to hel_l begin with a very gentle downhill slide".

Virgil, Out!

How can one party be cleared of electoral fraud because those laws no longer apply post-coup, and at the same time another party found guilty under the same laws being retroactvely applied??

The judges spent 10 hours boring us rather than just publishing the whole document and just giving us the verdicts, in an attempt to show how even-handed and legalistic they were being. The least they could have done is sorted out the logic of their decisions!

rych

You've hit the nail on the head rych. Welcome to "Animal Farm", Muslim style.

Virgil, Out!

The Constitutional Tribunal disbands Thai Rak Thai

They also revoked the voting rights of the party's 111 executives for five years. The party has committed wrongdoings that have negative impacts on democracy system of the country.

Read: This Muslim Military Dictatorship will be around for AT LEAST the next five years .... to police the decision of the court. I've said it before and I'll say it again ... Thailand will become a Muslim nation. Just watch as the Buddhist heartland to the north and north east gets eroded and emproilled in turmoil. Meanwhile, the current government will eventually take credit for pacifying the south .... and opening the door to the Muslims.

Praise Buddha, our children are being educated in Australia.

Virgil, Out!

Thankfully, I married a Thai girl studying dentistry in Sydney. OK ... all dentists are sadists! My wife and I both know that .... but putting her career choice aside, she's a wonderful girl. And we manage to surround ourselves with beautiful people - friends and family.

yes, it's generally true, you marry a bar girl, and that's the package you get. In comparison; if a guy were looking for a live-in au-pair for his kids, you'd think he might do some research on the prospective gal. However, if a guy gets all excited for a young smiling miss, he tosses caution to the wind. On the other side of the equation, someone like Virgil finds a college-trained lass and marries her - there's still a chance she could leave him and take as much as she can in the process - as women from all walks of life are known to do. Plus, you can bet a man in Virgil's situation is paying daily for having his dream girl stay around - serious amounts of money going to her and her Thai family on an on-going basis. If the payments dried up, how much longer would she keep staying with the old guy?

No Brahmburgers, I don't pay and I don't take kindly to your opinion that I do. My wife's family is middle class and her parents are well educated. The whole family has a westernised outlook on Thai life. My wife does give money to cousins, etc and she hates it. In fact, we tend to travel abroad during Songkran and other festivals to avoid having to give handouts. I am gainfully employed in an international company here. Most of our savings are invested in Australia. My personal view: any ex-pat who is funding his wife's family is married to the wrong girl ... or stark raving mad ... or both. You should all stop paying. Right now. Would you pay if you were married to an American, English or Australian woman? Then why pay in Thailand? Because it is Thai culture? What about your culture?

There's a chance that ANY woman could leave ANY man ANYWHERE in the world. Neither of us married for money. We are both of similar economic standing. Both of us are tired of the stereotypical response that we must be paying money. It simply isn't true.

Oh, and as to being old Brahmburgers .... I'm 39 and my wife is 37. I don't know how old you are, but we don't feel that old.

Virgil, Out!

As much as I try to love this country and the people, and accept the Thai way of life, it is cases like this that get me fuming! As everyone has said so far how can they release the murderer when the neighbours heard her with the victim. They even heard what they were arguing about. This seems to be the normal Thai way of "It was only a Farang so his murder by a Thai is not that important".

If eventually the police are forced to act they will say that the murderer has left the village and they cannot find her. This happens far too many times! Why are Farangs treated as dirt in this country?

Chris

Why are Farangs treated as dirt in this country?

Well, I ask myself why Farangs treat the Thai like dirt here everyday!!! Wealthy westerners argue with tuk-tuk drivers over 20 or 30 baht in front of the Amari Watergate Hotel! They complain about the food, the heat, the traffic, the crowds. They steal beautiful Thai women for themselves ... Ok ... I'm guilty of that!!!

Take a walk down Patpong or Soi Cowboy and watch the dirty old men from Europe, America and Australia grope unfortunate young girls (mostly young enough to be their grand daughters), barfine them and then do God-knows-what.

Yes, the way Farangs and Thai treat each other can be disgraceful at times ... but I think it is balanced. Those who fall in love with a bar girl (if you'd call it love) get .... a bar girl. I'm Aussie and if I married a girl like that from Australia then I bet I'd be asking for trouble ... and getting in with the wrong crowd too.

Thankfully, I married a Thai girl studying dentistry in Sydney. OK ... all dentists are sadists! My wife and I both know that .... but putting her career choice aside, she's a wonderful girl. And we manage to surround ourselves with beautiful people - friends and family. Being ripped off by the taxi driver is par for the course ... and we're living much better than his family. If the guy painting the house rips us off, we just get another painter. Many of her patients can't afford to pay for their dental work in a single payment. We wait for our money but most of it comes - sometimes long after we'd written it off or in some other form.

So, what's my point? Well, I think people are the same all over the world. Tourists and ex-pats get into trouble all over the world. In Thailand Farang men seem to have an apetite for gogo girls. Play with fire and you're gonna get burned. I don't condone the murder of anyone - from the Pope right down to Saddam, and I pity the fellow who was murdered last week, along with his family.

My message? Chill out! What's a few baht? Figure out what really matters in life and surround yourselves with good people. Its not Thai, its not Farang ... its the way of the world.

God Bless

Virgil

Australia is having another crack at ruining Thailand’s tourist industry, by putting the frighteners on traveling in the Kingdom. The second time in only a couple of months.

australia has one of the worst human abuses records in history; they have always been Asia’s natural enemy, the yellow peril and keep australia white policies. It is only in the last few years that they have come to realise the importance of good relations with it’s Asian neighbours, especially after being dumped by Britain & Europe who no longer require importing in bulk australia`s lamb produce.

In these troubled times, it is no longer absolutely safe to travel anywhere in the world, including all major cities. It appears that australia still regards many Asian countries as backward, dangerous and of inferior infrastructure.

Sadly australia is a leopard that cannot change its spots.

Who is this idiot? What is he smoking? Where is he from? Why is he in Thailand? I'm proud of Australia's diverse population. I am married to a Thai and am doing my part to help. I am also proud that our country donated over $1 billion to the Asian tsunami disaster relief. I'm proud that 53% of all foreign students in Australia are Asian. I'm proud that our surgeons operate free clinics throughout S. E. Asia performing corrective eye surgery, facial reconstructions, heart surgery and other life saving procedures.

AUSTRALIA'S DIVERSE POPULATION

At 30 June 2006 almost one quarter (24%) of the Australian population was born overseas.

People born in the United Kingdom accounted for 23% of all overseas-born persons in Australia's population, followed by New Zealand (10%) and Italy, China and Viet Nam (4% each).

The proportion of people in Australia's population born in the United Kingdom and Italy declined between 1996 and 2006, while the proportion born in China and New Zealand increased. The Viet Nam-born proportion remained steady.

The number of Australians born overseas increased by 1.5% per year on average between 1996 and 2006. This was higher than that of the Australia-born population (1.1%) and total population (1.2%).

Between 1996 and 2006, of the 50 most common countries of birth, persons born in Sudan recorded the largest average increase (27% per year), followed by persons born in Afghanistan (13%) and Iraq (10%). The largest declines in this group were persons born in Poland, Hungary and Italy (down 2% per year each).

Persons born in Southern and Central Asia as well as Sub-Saharan Africa recorded average increases of 6% per year, the largest growth of all major regions between 1996 and 2006.

The two regions of North-West Europe and Southern and Eastern Europe together accounted for nearly half of overseas-born residents in Australia at 30 June 2006 (30% and 17% respectively).

At 30 June 2001 Western Australia had the highest proportion of overseas-born residents (29%) of all states and territories, while Tasmania had the lowest proportion (11%).

This page last updated 29 March 2007

Source: 3412.0 - Migration, Australia, 2005-06

Latest ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 29/03/2007

So, shove it where it fits, pal!!!

Virgil, Out!

i am gonna stay home this songkran - its ridiculous and completely out of hand. it should be to sprinkle a little water onto loved ones faces, but unfortuately it resorts to drunken idiots lobbing buckets of ice and water with powder regardless of driving or not. good luck, you will need it if you venture out.

I agree with pattaya_girl. The whole weekend is just too dangerous to enjoy. Keep out of tourist areas and attend private functions rather than street parties. That is the safest way to spend SongKran!

Virgil, Out!

My wife and I have seriously considered moving from the Untied States to Thailand to retire and spend the nestegg that we have saved over the years in the land of smiles. We even bought a nice piece of property there last year.

Lately We've been having second thoughts due to the appreciation of the baht, the terrorists unrest, and the new laws that seem to have an unfriendly "anti foreigner" tilt.

This new internet tax of 940 baht for Thais and 1490 baht for foreigners is another bad sign that the welcome mat for foreigners is being withdrawn. It's bad enough that the government is charging almost as much in tax as it is for the service but to charge foreigners more than Thais because, according to Sombat Merou-Ruang, director of the Alien Internet Control Division at CAT headquarters in Bangkok,

"foreigners that do not have work in Thailand only hang out on internet forums, visit pornographic sites and other website lamock, different from Thai citizens who mostly use the internet for banking, ecommerce, and furthering their education" creates an unfair two tiered system based on cultural stereotyping.

I hope this is just another rumor and not really going to happen.

If Thailand really wants foreigners to retire in Thailand and spend their foreign exchange it's going to have to provide more than a tax to lure them

If , on the other hand, Thailand is fed up with foreigners, retirees, tourists and businessmen, it's applying the right measures to scare them away

egeefay,

April Fools mate. Got to admit, George would have caught me out too - that is if the luxury internet tax had been anywhere in the realms of affordability for the average Thai.

Good one George - I had the building shut down here because the water supply was contaminated with H2O .... one lady wanted to call the health department about it.

Virgil, Out!

I'm not sure if it is racist to say Muslims seem to cause more trouble than most in this world? Or do we blame the press? Yes I know that not all Muslims are a problem.

It is fair to say that a fair portion of my posts on this forum are speaking out against Muslim control in Thailand. But when it comes to individual acts like this one it has nothing to do with religion. The guy is just a sick maniac. Who knows what goes through his head?

Virgil, Out!

should have let the death penalty stand. But seeing as what he did, i don't think his fellow Thai inmates will be very impressed, so his deserved punishment will probably come sooner rather than later.

BB

He got the death penalty all ready,Thai intimates will take care of that in less than a year

rip

Actually, these days he will probably be put in protective custody unless Thailand has a prisoner exchange treaty with Pakistan.

Virgil, Out!