tomazbodner

51 minutes ago, Aussie999 said:

Keep up with the news, in that Air India incident, someone actually cut off the fuel from both engines, they didn't say if it was the pilot or co-pilot.,.so your comment is irrelevant.

Who cares. Trump also cites stupidity as National Security issue to slap tariffs on others.

2 minutes ago, GroveHillWanderer said:

I disagree - if you were to cut off fuel to the engines at a later stage, there would be a much better chance to restart them, as was attempted here (the switches were quickly put back to the "run" position, but there just wasn't enough time for them to regain thrust).

 

However by cutting off the fuel just after take off, you could pretty much guarantee that the plane was going to crash.

Apologies. What I meant was - if that was done over the ocean, for example, the wreckage might never be found and it could never be determined what has happened. But if you do it so close to airport, yes, there's a big fireball (although had they had a few 100ft more altitude, they might actually pull out of that after restarting the engines), but the recorders on the plane would make it quite clear who has done what, which would bring a lot of shame to pilot's family. Then again, I'm not a psychiatrist nor know about captain's mental state (assuming it was first officer flying as was reported) to know whether he's capable of something like that...

1 minute ago, impulse said:

 

I've contended for years (as if that matters to anyone) that they need to install cockpit video recorders now that the tech is so easily available.  That would put any mystery to bed, even if it did occasionally catch pilots picking their noses.

Was thinking of the same and remember some years ago when this topic came up and there was a serious discussion about mounting them on... Can't remember which crash that has followed but the CVRs weren't clear on who did what... then it was compared to Virgin Galactic where copilot accidentally moved something and the whole "plane" broke apart - captured on camera in cockpit.

Well, from MentourNow video linked above, this topic will be discussed in video that's getting released on Monday. Maybe that provides answers.

33 minutes ago, impulse said:

 

A few posts above explain that there was an issue with defective (for lack of a more technical word) switches that were installed without the safety features.

 

I wonder if the inspection they (Air India) did on their other 787s immediately after the crash was to look for defective switches?   But that's just me wondering.  They cleared them to fly within a day so it couldn't have been a very deep dive inspection.

I watched Petter's video (MentourNow) listed above - I watched his videos in the past... and partially agree with him and Ben who cohosted that session...

Locking mechanism is simply supposed to prevent moving the switches without pulling them out during the movement. Ben said that rules state that from rotation the hands are supposed to be on the yoke, nowhere near the thrust levers. But this is an assumption that both pilots actually followed the rules. It could be that hand was left on the levers longer and when moving the hand off them flipped the switches accidentally, and if both switches had locking mechanism broken (this plane was one of the first off the production line of 787) it would be potentially plausible.

But seems if that isn't the case, this looks deliberate. But why would you do something like that in the middle of the take-off? Surely if someone was going to crash the plane that would be done over the sea or in hard to reach mountainous area, with fuse for recorders pulled? Look at EgyptAir and Eurowings, SilkAir... it would just be a very strange stage of flight to do something like this deliberately...

On 7/10/2025 at 12:04 PM, impulse said:

The preliminary report is due out tomorrow. 

 

FWIW, Here's what The Air Current has to say:

 

 

 

 

Air India crash investigation focuses on movement of engine fuel control switches - The Air Current

 

https://theaircurrent.com/

 

They're (TAC) being widely quoted, but that may just be out of a lack of other theories floating around.  There are other venues speculating that it was likely a software glitch.  I'm not expecting much from the preliminary report because they've still got months and months of work to do.

The flight and voice recorders seemed quite definitive but this is not something you can easily do by mistake. You'd need to put quite a bit of force to pull out the stick and move it to cut-of position. There are also metal brackets on the sides that prevent you from accidentally touching it - which was an issue on older planes where the stick could just be moved without pulling it out first and was a physical rather than electronic switch.

Pilot also said he didn't move it when asked. And there would be no reason for anyone to touch those switches in flight. They are to start/shut down engines, so generally only touched on the taxiway and at the gate, except in case of engine fire or detachment, etc.

Had this been older plane like 737-800, yes, it was possible to leave switches in position where vibration could accidentally move them to cut-off but not on 787.

Some serious questions. How could pilot switch (which is, if you have a manual car, equate to unknowingly pulling up the gear shift stick and moving it to reverse position) to cut-off without realising it, or, does the engine controller have the ability to physically move the switch on its own? If the latter, there would be a deadly flaw in Dreamliner engine fuel control system. If this was pilot error... I just can't see how this could be accidental. It borders on impossible.

About time to cite safety concerns after Air India disaster and cancel that Dreamliner orders for Thai Airways.

20 minutes ago, proton said:

 

Coway are by far the best as are their water filters

I use Coway for water filters and I'm quite happy despite controversy after customer performed proper lab test on the water and it came out with over 3x the limit of colliform bacteria...

Coway refused her request for a refund, probably paving the way for a media lynch of the company. This was their response (ask Uncle Google to Translate it for you):

On air filters, although the main reason to stick with Xiaomi was gone with Purifier 4 series (same filters used across the fleet), they still provide great value with inexpensive (genuine) filters, small size and great performance. I do feel however that older models (like 2S) lasted longer than newer models. 3H and even 4 are already making noise on the small air quality sensor fans, while 2S that's probably now 5 years older than these are still showing no issues at all (except burned out OLED screens for inability to adjust the brightness on them). 

Xiaomi is still a great deal, with filters lasting 6-12 months going for about a monthly subsciption cost of Coway. But even Coway is a great deal compared to some "legacy" air filter producing companies. charging an arm and a leg for both the box and the replacement filters. I got burned on a few of them, where a couple of months after buying a box I was told replacement filters need to be ordered from Japan at prohibitive costs because... that's now an old model, and filters are no longer stocked. A few months earlier it was marked as New arrival! To avoid defamation lawsuit I'll keep the names of Japanese, American and Dutch companies to myself...

On 7/9/2025 at 2:25 PM, 3NUMBAS said:

Future belongs to BRICS': Putin drops bombshell, sends shocking de-dollarisation message to Trump

 

https://m.economictimes.com/news/international/world-news/future-belongs-to-brics-putin-drops-bombshell-sends-shocking-de-dollarisation-message-to-trump/amp_videoshow/122299199.cms

Thought that video was a deepfake so I went to search for original... and it's actually real speech...

http://en.kremlin.ru/events/president/news/77373

16 hours ago, Yagoda said:

Freelance drivers are illegal aren't they? Don't they have to be either off of a platform or working a license cab? All I'm trying to find out is what this new rule does. Do you know?

Now anyone with private car and driver's license can drive for ride hailing providers. But with this change, those private cars with white plates would have to be registered as public vehicles and receive yellow plates, which would increase their costs and depreciate the value of the vehicle. Many drivers won't bother, so there will be a drop in available cars, probably resulting in higher fares and longer waiting times or unanswered ride requests.

I had a privilege to study with professors of Harvard. The way the material is presented is very visual, to the point, without the usual academic fluff unless you want to drill deeper. That was quite a big difference when compared with other universities, so if I had any kids, which I don't, I would definitely work towards it. Compared to other useless expenses, and having years to prepare for it, the tuition fees are achievable for many middle class families as well.

27 minutes ago, ricklev said:

The long use by shelf life listed on some of the Maison Jean Philippe breads made me wonder if preservatives and dough conditioners are part of their mix. They have turned into a pretty commercial bakery and are available at all the supermarkets.  I would be happy to be told I am wrong...

I would not know. The sliced bread from them is available in many places so maybe that's the case for these, but for sourdough, my closest Villa markets only have it in deep frozen 2 packs. It defrosts well at low power microwave - the whole baguette would be about 8 min at 100W. To get it fresh I'd need to go to Sukhumvit 23, and to make trip worth I'd buy more than I need and end up freezing the rest anyway, so this is convenient enough.

Need to give it a try.

Just now, gargamon said:

What's the difference. I said rent. Don't buy.

There is a difference. I think it's quite a stretch to see someone turning 40th floor unit into a karaoke bar, and pets are banned in most condos. Street dogs are a different story, especially if there's a moobaan nearby, but nothing that can't be fixed with double glazed windows on a high floor.

16 minutes ago, Yellowtail said:

I would add that anyone buying a condo make sure that the purchase includes at least one DEDICATED parking space. 

Absolutely agree. Most condos now only have 30-40% of parking lots compared to number of units, and while some don't allow any dedicated slots, those that do, usually only do that for largest units.

1 hour ago, BumGun said:

but that's VERY simplistic way to look at it because you conveniently left our opportunity and sovereign risk, amongst other risks , not to say that's not a consideration

 

If 10 years ago you had invested in say Nvidia and Amazon shares with your capital and then paid rent to live in Thailand, you'd be far, far ahead now ie opportunity cost

 

Governments change and they decide to change the laws and you aren't allowed back in as they are not permanent resident ie sovereign risk eg some people  who purchased property in the US and have legal status but can't get it renewed will be nervous, or even because they have an unpaid parking ticket 10 years ago. If you can' get your retirement visa renewed because they changed the base requirement to 8 Million Baht in the bank , then what ?

 

Purchasing property to live in is really about a lifestyle choice, somewhere to hang your hat and call home but if you're not a citizen, you are their as a guest who can be kicked out.  If you're happy with that, go ahead.  I'd never look at it as an investment though.

 

As to Australians, they are property weird, because to them purchasing property is mostly a no brainier if you can afford it, there's no real analysis or due diligence necessary (flood plains and coastal erosion aside)  as its heavily subsidised by the government in terms of tax relief and supply is severely restricted by government, so prices just go up and even insurance is often subsidised by government eg northern Australia in uninsurable so government stepped in as the underwriter (similar to much of the US with the NFIP ).  Aussies then assume the same everywhere ie a business plan is 1.Buy property   2. ????  3. Profit !

 

Obviously simplistic. We didn't put in capital gain taxes, potential income from renting the unit out, differences in utility prices between rented and owned properties, potential losses from investing in something that went belly up, etc. My post was for someone who has a choice (and funds) between renting a place and buying one, that there are benefits to owning it if that's done in the right kind of property in the right area, at the right price. Like there are benefits to those who have few, if any ties to Thailand and are just longer term tourists, in renting, rather than owning a place.

One admission... I bought condo at the beginning of COVID when people thought there was the end of the World coming. Sansiri wanted to close the project and offered 50% discount on all unsold units. Hence if I went to sell mine, I'd probably get 50-60% profit on it. But I like it (despite being thrown around in last quake), especially sunsets out the windows... So I have no interest in selling it.

I'm not Aussie and have no knowledge nor interest in real-estate there, hence I would be useless in any discussion about it.

43 minutes ago, scorecard said:

I bought a second hand condo in central Bkk. 

At first AGM several old issues raise their heads.

Just one, 2 old Chinese-Thai condo owners were asked to show 2 Thai bank savings accounts which held funds built over many years for future maintenance. They totally refused.

 

At the same meeting a new owners committee was formed including a famous senior cop who was admired for his long-term stand against corruption and he spoke advanced English. He asked for further details re the bank books and one of the old ladies insisted that she would neve show the bank books because there ws several farng condo owners; she was convinced all farang are dangerous and dishonest.

 

The cop told the old ladies that they did not own the funds and they must comply with a request of many owners to see the bank books. They refused.

 

Cop started legal action to force exhibiting of the bank books.

 

That worked but in reality the total funds in the 2 savings accounts was in total under 10,000Baht.

 

Unpaid maintenance bills? That was harsh. Never saw anything like that happening here. In our condo they cut off water, refuse to extend parking rights and access to common areas, which is I think for 3 months overdue fees which are collected twice a year for building maintenance and every 3 months for water usage. Electricity is anyway paid directly to MEA. 

37 minutes ago, TopThai54 said:

Why do Farangs (especially Americans & Australians) always want to buy Properties ! 
Rent ! You can always move if you have unpleasant neighbors or want to relocate to another town ! In many cases Houses or Condos turn to be difficult to sell and/or with a loss ! 

I bought it because I didn't want to have my permanent address registered at a place I don't own.

This place has only a handful of foreigners, and admittedly we don't interact at all. But other than 2 cases (far from my floor, whom I've only seen a couple of times), it is far more calm (and quiet) to live in this place than it was in previous ones I was renting. The people are different. This building has 90%+ of people living here owning their place. There are very few AirBnb cases, and after owners got fined, their units were put up for sale, so we don't have short nor long term rental problem, the common areas are rarely used - that 50m swimming pool rarely sees anyone coming near, fitness is a bit more popular, but only early morning,, like 5-6 am, and after 7 pm... and lobby - there is a small community that plays board games in the evenings.

It is very different from living in a building intended for rental, or one that has lots of people renting.

But it seems the only thing you're looking at is reselling the unit. Yes, if that's what you're after, then it might not be worth it. But then, put together a list of all the rent you've paid in the past 20 years, and sum it up. Now compare that with the cost of condo plus maintenance fees - and deduct what you could sell it for. I am quite sure your rent is considerably higher than the loss on the condo resale value.

On 6/30/2025 at 1:16 PM, rikiderorck said:

Hello people ,

Ok so as a foreigner I believe I cannot own land in Thailand. The only thing I can do is lease the land for 30 years . I can own the house that sits on it. But after 30 years the problem starts because there is no guarantee I can stay. The landowner can refuse to renew and I lose access to the land. So the best I can do is maybe destroy or remove the house, if the contract allows it. I think I understand that, but correct me if I’m wrong please.

Now moving to the main question I have. I heard condos are a different story. I heard that foreigners can own a condo. But isn’t the land under the condo still an issue. I heard something like the land must be majority owned by Thais. So what happens if the Thai majority one day wants to remove the foreign owners. Is that possible. Could they vote to change something that forces foreigners out later?

In the end I just want to understand how condos are really different from leasehold villas. Because it still feels like in both cases the land is controlled by Thai law and Thai people, and foreigners can always be limited or blocked. So can someone explain how secure a condo really is long term. 

Condo is an entity in which only up to 49% of total unit space can be owned by foreigners. As unit owner, you are "co-owner" to the project, which is Thai as it's below 50% foreign owned, and the land is owned by the project, not you. That is true for "Freehold" condos, but not for leasehold, where land is leased for 30 years - there are many such examples in Ratchaprasong area between Rama 1 and Sarasin roads... But assuming Freehold - yes, you can own the condo unit, or even several of them in same or different condos. If you have permanent residence in Thailand, then you don't need anything special - get list of co-owners with their share of floor space from juristic office (seller will provide that) and statement that there are no overdue payments, buy unit, register it at land office and you're done, If you don't have PR, then you need to also provide proof from bank that funds were transferred from abroad.

There are no differences between Thai and foreign co-owners after purchase. Only exception would be if project is tethering on the edge of allowed foreign ownership, and it's in area popular with foreigners, then foreign-owned units may command higher resale prices. But that's only true in small area of Bangkok, Pattaya and Phuket.

Your hypothetical question on whether majority could decide to remove foreign owners... That's very far fetched, but seems impossible. We had one that was causing a lot of trouble and his parents were called in to remove him from building. He was gone for several months while their unit was put up for sale but nobody bought it. Eventually, he returned, alas rarely venturing out of the room. There are also 3 ladies on 3rd floor I think that are in some sort of conflict with the rest of residents... can't do anything to them either.

All that can be done is approving new condo rules by the project committee, which penalise certain behaviours and by that encourage behaviour change. But you cannot force someone to sell off his/her property. It's not like rent, where either side can cancel the contract. You actually own that box.

There is one exception to all of this - and that is in case the building is no longer habitable. Example would be major damage in quake or fire, which renders building unsafe and too expensive to repair. In that case, the project folds and unit owners lose their units. I don't know of any cases of such to give details on exactly what happens in such a case.

1 minute ago, rimmae2 said:

If using e-gates there is no stamp as was the case previously up to pre Covid when autogates wwre in use. On return I always use lanes for Thai PP holders. e-gates on arrival are only available to 2 Nationalities and if a person uses these then there are requirements to register for certain types of visa including those with WP - refer to Deloitte website which I think that I mentioned before on this forum.  

I never registered for e-gates as my PR booklet was 2/3 full and I have heard of people having a problem after changing the PR booklet and they could no longer use eChannel or whatever it's officially called. And Immigration couldn't fix it. So I wanted to wait until I change the booklet, which I did but forgot about that.

Each time I go through counters, they stamp both my passport and PR booklet. In the past I saw someone going through eChannel and then going to a desk where an officer stamped both booklets. And that took longer than going through the Thai passport counter...

That's why I am interested in it. If there's no need for any stamps when going in and out of country into these booklets, I'd definitely prefer to use e-gates, so the passport and the white book don't fill up. Their annual non-quota visa and endorsement stamps are taking enough space already.

2 hours ago, rimmae2 said:

I did not register to use e.gates as I had to several years ago when e.gates could be used on departure and entry.

 

Today I obtianed a new non-quota immigration visa. No questions asked related to e.gates; normal procedure - 3 to 4 mins to check the documents and return circa 1 hour later.

I forgot to do that, as I always go to Thai Passport counter that has basically 0 people as all others use e-gates...

But if using e-gates, I assume I still need to get stamped?

11 hours ago, jojothai said:

How do you know there was substandard steel used at the Project?
Where were the test results published? Do not confuse rumour or suspected issues with fact.
The article clearly states "Contrary to earlier reports suggesting substandard materials, the study confirmed that the steel and concrete used met necessary standards. "
what knowledge do you have of the high speed train project to make any statements that the same "substandard steel" was used?
I know for a fact that the reinforcing steel for the thai high speed rail contract by the same construction company was tested and all found to be within standards. Samples were taken and tested very shortly after the collapse.
Credit to the Thai companies who acted quickly to alleviate any concerns.
Unless you have facts, do not create fiction out of something you do not know.

First of all, sorry for late response. Didn't realise that I didn't click Submit button yesterday when this was written.

As you likely would know (I am just reading post above this one), the same steel can be suitable for one purpose but not another. SKY steel was unsuitable to use for a high rise building, according to several experts, some quoted in links below. If I recall correctly it was the outdated process manufacturing the steel that made it hard on the outside but too soft on the inside. I don't remember the name of that process, but you could probably fill in here.

The rest that was written yesterday:

I've had some links in history that were republishing of articles and no longer work (originals are/were behind paywall) so I can't show all, but here are some of those that cover tests on materials removed from SAO building construction site after results were known, and that's in contrast to the claim of the cover article in this thread that the concrete met all necessary standards. There are also articles about the collapse of the warehouse in Amata, and photos of the same type of SKY rebars, with logos clearly visible. And finally the articles about the company producing steel with outdated process that's even no longer used in China, and making steel substandard for high rise construction being shut down last year by Thai government for variety of violations.

I wanted to add a Khaosod article of why the truth will be suppressed and facts manipulated to make a certain chicken-shaped country look good, but that's an opinion piece and speculation, so I decided not to. It specifically pointed to positive spin to alleviate any concerns on other projects by the same players.

https://thethaiger.com/news/bangkok/steel-samples-fail-tests-after-building-collapse-in-thailand

https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/general/2992846/substandard-steel-used-in-collapsed-bangkok-tower

https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/general/3027775/saos-steel-brand-found-at-collapsed-factory-in-chon-buri

https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/se-asia/thailand-says-collapsed-bangkok-tower-used-substandard-steel

https://www.nationthailand.com/news/general/40050096

https://www.nationthailand.com/news/general/40048642

https://thai.news/news/thailand/sky-steel-ltd-scandal-safety-breach-sparks-nationwide-investigation-in-thailand-2025

https://www.business-humanrights.org/pt/latest-news/thailand-steel-samples-from-collapsed-skyscraper-may-indicate-use-of-substandard-materials-industry-group-says/

https://www.worldconstructionnetwork.com/news/substandard-steel-under-construction-tower-collapse/?cf-view

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-04-01/collapsed-bangkok-skyscraper-used-substandard-steel-bars-probe-finds

https://www.nationthailand.com/news/general/40048278