richard_smith237

Why.... because on some routes they're still better. - BKK - Jakarta - Thai are better. - BKK - Tokyo - Thai are cheaper than ANA and JAL. BUT - the real kicker is the amount of air-miles I get from Credit cards - we accrue the ROP points and spend then on TG flights. ... usually Japan... It can bit hit and miss, but I think Thai get a back rap for their lack of consistency... i.e. 9 good flights and 1 poor flight we remember. Last two flights with Thai (this year) were spot... But other flights with Qatar, highlight where Thai are weaker.

Is it not ??... I caught a pick-pocketer in Barcelona... I grabbed hold of he wrist, but she was refusing to return my money (clenched in her fist)... I bent her wrist and told her... Let of the money no or your wrist snaps... She struggled so I twisted harder on her wrist and she let go... I would have kept on twisting..... the concern there was other in 'her gang' too, but we were in quite a large group too... If someone so blatantly steels our money, I don't think we should just accept it. Also, while the British lad did have a beer in his hand, he wasn't acting heavily drunk or intoxicated... in fact he was quite calm about perusing the return of his money.

My missus won’t even go on the back of my motorcycle…. Though she did once down the local soi & I think she enjoyed it. I suggested we dye our hair henna orange - Van-van & Seqoi (biker guy .& girl). In Trat on the way to the koh Chang ferry I saw a whole western family on one on the main road (cars doing 90 kmh past them) - lethal.?

I think the customer just expected a working seat after paying a premium for business class - anyone would complain about that.

Indeed…. Pay that amount of money for a business class seat and it doesn’t recline he has every right to be upset - a full refund or equivalent miles should be the very least of the airlines response. On numerous TG flights have had screens not working - no biggie as I carry and pad - low expectations!!!

The image is stolen from a report of an accident in Phuket in 2017 (reported by The Nation).

Yet here you are scuba - why ???

As per my above comment… Any tax issues or were the BOI happy with > US$80,000 overseas income ???

Doesn’t the LTR Visa have specific requirements? i.e. they want to see a yearly income of US$80,000… how does that fit with the new tax rules, they guarantee that you’ll only be taxed 17% - that’s US$13,600 Hows the LTR looking in comparison ?

Of course it won’t be - this is nothing other then ‘media lip service’… Same here… & then Grab & Bolt who cancel the ride before they get to you… Solution: Book grab or Bolt premium & it cuts the BS.

Or continuing to have the discussion as new postered with further input enter the fray…. It’s easy enough to scroll on by…. So, why did you open the thread this time around if you are no longer interested ???

We know the Swiss-man on his trike had already entered the junction before the SUV reached the junction and entered the frame of the CCTV). Completely agree... this seems to be the case in another thread where a Merc-driver cut across a Motorcyclist, a lot of posters were suggesting the motorcyclist was speeding - but the 'impact' makes it appear faster and distorts our perspective. IMO that motorcyclist was travelling the same speed as all the others which passed before the Merc cut across traffic and cause the crash. Yup... thats very well known that witness statements are extremely unreliable.

In Thailand priority is to the left. If two vehicles enter a junction from different directions at the same time, the vehicle on the left side has a right of way, except when there's a designation of "principle roadway" in which case the vehicle on the principle roadway has a right of way.] Section 72 11 [A principle roadway is announced by the traffic officer and installed with indicative traffic signs.] the "law" part of this is mentioned in the Highway code translation which actually dates from 1979 Land Traffic Act, B.E. 2522 (1979) 100% correct - I meant to the left... no idea why I wrote to the right !!... (too late to edit the comment now).

Yup... I quite agree... Very rudimentary calculations based on what maybe flawed observation and assumption gives the following. CCTV Frame rates are 25 fps The SUV travelled ~2m in 2 frames... thats a speed of 90 kmh. The SUV Travelled ~2m in 4 frames... thats a speed of 45 kmh. If the measurement is slightly off and its not 2m but 1.5m. The SUV travelled ~1.5m in 2 frames... thats a speed of 33.7kmh. The SUV Travelled ~1.5m in 4 frames... thats a speed of 67.5 kmh. Yes, its rudementary, however, in the most favourable light - the SUV was travelling at 33 kms... in the most damning light, the SUV was travelling at 90kmh.... my guess is the SUV was travelling somewhere closer to 60 kmh - which is a reckless speed to enter a junction at which the visibility of crossing traffic is blocked.

I think their biggest market was the 5 year Membership - its seems a lot of people were getting that visa option, I suspect very few now will at that cost. I think Thai Elite have set their marketing strategy too high and this could cost their bottom line. I can imagine meetings where they are discussing people queueing up for the 5 Million Baht and 2.5 Million Baht memberships and they've projected ahead with fantastical grandeur and no one on the room has stepped back and said... "hang on a minute... really......????"

Happend before - we purchased something for my son from Next Thailand with free delivery (value was about 1300 baht)... but the shipment came from overseas.... Thai customs calculated delivery which nudged the total cost up over 1500 baht, and then they charged us something in the region of 700 baht Tax (which included their handling charge or something similar)... Seemed very dodgy to me...

Indeed - this would be the logical way to set things up.... What about regular post - i.e. grandparents sending presents over etc.... Are customs going to be jumping all over those packages too ??? and does this mean packages are going to take much longer to get through rather than the usual 1 week to 10 days ?

Right of way at unmarked junctions of equal status is to the right - however, that right of way is yielded when someone is already 'in' the junction... the Trike was in the junction before the SUV reached it (i.e. before the SUV enters the camera frame the trike is in the junction). Thus any point discussing giving-way to the left is moot. At his junction although the north-south road running parallel to the railway tracks, along which the white SUV was travelling is the wider, raster road, it is the 'lower status' of the two roads. The 'east-West' road along which the Swiss-Man on the Mobility trike was travelling is the primary road, this is most likely due to the added complication of the railway crossing and prevention of east-west traffic backing up across the tracks / crossing due to cars having to give way to the North-South road.... No stop 'signs'... But thats a very 'American' thing... The line on the road also denotes 'stop' (fixed / unbroken white line)... While there often is an associated, there doesn't have to be and not having a sign does not make the road markings void. There is also a possibility that the road markings are remnant of a previous road 'set up'.. but they don't look so old... So I'd argue that give way lines (stop lines) were added to the junction to denote right of way and they just didn't bother getting round to the signs. Thats not a surprise in Thailand where the priority at many junctions remain 'ambiguous' or in contradiction to common sense because officials just don't care until something happens.... they can't be bothered to put up signs here because 'the boss' didn't tell them to.

Sooner than that I think... not specifically the swiss-guy, but another innocent motorist (maybe a motorcyclist) because the junctions along that road are clearly a terrible design and with 'most people' driving in a manner many would consider dangerous, and others would consider 'with complete disregard for the safety of anyone else'.... another accident at this same location and similar junctions along that stretch are surely a daily occurance.

😂........I think it is you that cannot read videos...............😂 I think its quite clear that the approach of the SUV was at speed.... it enter the camera frame 'at speed'... entered the junction 'at speed' and took out the swiss-guy 'at speed'.... This is apparently ok to do for some forum members, because regardless of legal right of way, its the way 'most people' approach and travel through this junction... so killing someone who has right of way doesn't matter as its their own fault (apparently).

5 year sticker - but each entry gives you 1 year... I've not heard of that option with Thai Elite - but its good to know its possible. It would appear that your visa is a 5 year P.E. Visa (rather than the 5 year S.E. visa which I have).

As he's 24, he may well have completed Military Service... its an unknown and somewhat irrelevant. Punishment should of course be inline with any other Thai lad who's caught behaving in the same manner. The issue of course is that the punishment is not severe and often just passed over - this enables the the whole of society to behave with total disregard for the law. As the article quoted - a few days ago a Thai Lady *(about 50 years old) a very wealthy CEO caught drink driving nearly 4x the legal limit - the Thai Police had 'chest cams' and they recorder her abusive language (calling the Police offer 'sub-human' etc)... this recording went viral in the Thai social media of course. I wonder if the CEO and this Thai-British lad receive the same level of penalty - such behavior has to involve an automatic imprisonment if Thailand is going to make any inroads to this national endemic of DUI. This is the story here, there was far greater response on Thai social media than this forum. https://aseannow.com/topic/1325957-executive-arrested-for-drunk-driving-and-attacking-police-in-bangkok/

Pathetic ! Dad could easily be Thai. for all you know. Less likely with a boy called Matthew thought.... The lad is 24, so an adult... I don't know what kind of upbringing leads to that, but however solid the upbringing, the young lad can go off the rails at any time, particularly in a place such as Pattaya. I'm constantly evaluating how I can do better to bring up my son so he doesn't end up doing something silly such as this... Ultimately, we can't choke our children, they have to make their own choices and be aware of the consequences.... A 24 year old going off the rails - Booze, Ketamin, accident, DUI... its the norm. I know a lot of Thai friends, I do not know a Thai person who has not had a drink driving related accident... I also a lot of Westerners here, I only know of two westerners here who have had a drink drive related accident, but its probably more than two.

The 20 years cost you 2 Million Baht last year, full perks ? Which Visa sticker did they place in your Passport ??... S.E. (5 years) or P.E. (1 year) - both renewable for duration of membeship.

Agreed... I believe Thai Elite are shooting themselves in the foot moving towards selling an more expensive service with a limit on perks, rather than just a really solid good value service. If they were to go back to the 500,000 baht for 5 years Membership - No perks, they'd continue being successful. I wonder how their new sales and profits look like with the new points system and pricing compared to previous years.