Chester-le-Street dad trapped in Thailand since lockdown desperate to get home

By Hannah Graham

 

Image: Allan Coughlan

 

A County Durham dad who has been trapped abroad since March hopes he may finally make it home next month.

 

Allan Coughlan, from Pelton, near Chester-le-Street, County Durham, has been stuck in Thailand since his flight home was cancelled on March 21.

 

Rapidly running out of money and enduring strict lockdown conditions, Allan, 57, was unable to get on a rescue flight back to Britian as coronavirus spread.

 

After the March 21 flight was called off, Allan had booked a further place on a flight out on March 30, but again his hopes were dashed when Emirates was forced to cancel the flight.

 

Full story: https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-east-news/chester-le-street-dad-trapped-18482911

 

Chronicle Live: 20-06-28

 

 

So he gave up on trying to get a flight ?.....

 

Seems to be plenty leaving Swampy !!

Apparently the only flights available would have cost 88,000 baht (£2,200) and he didn't have the money.  

5 minutes ago, Don Mega said:

So he gave up on trying to get a flight ?.....

 

Seems to be plenty leaving Swampy !!

How many are domestic though?

I booked two seats with Eva Air to Heathrow for pals in this same position early May for 21,000 baht....no problems...so why cannot this chap do the same...

7 hours ago, Dmaxdan said:

Apparently the only flights available would have cost 88,000 baht (£2,200) and he didn't have the money.  

 

7 hours ago, petermik said:

I booked two seats with Eva Air to Heathrow for pals in this same position early May for 21,000 baht....no problems...so why cannot this chap do the same...

Not true...see above

4 minutes ago, Dmaxdan said:

Apparently the only flights available would have cost 88,000 baht (£2,200) and he didn't have the money.  

So not trapped then !!

????Rescue flight? A sensationalist article. He was either broke, lacked initiative or actually didn't want to leave. I wouldn't blame him.

Running out of money focusses the mind, I suppose. Like people say, bit difficult to believe he couldn't find a way home if he'd really tried, plenty of others managed it.

3 minutes ago, Captain Monday said:

????Rescue flight? A sensationalist article. He was either broke, lacked initiative or actually didn't want to leave. I wouldn't blame him.

Most likely the "trapped" part is the BS he fed his family back home so he could stay longer to play with cheap Thai......................

Airlines have a lot to answer for allowing people with very limited financial means to travel.

Edited June 28, 20206 yr by Mr Meeseeks

wants to go back to Chester Le Street eh?  Odd wish to have. ????

8 minutes ago, Mr Meeseeks said:

Airlines have a lot to answer for allowing people with very limited financial means to travel.

Sorry, but they don't have anything to answer for.  They are not Charities, they are profitable (hopefully) fully commercial businesses. I think a lot of people around the World are going to have to adjust to flying becoming what it used to be 40 years ago,  somewhat of  a luxury item and not so everyday as it has been in recent years and since low cost airlines become so common.  When this all shakes out, many airlines will have gone to the wall and the remainder with be charging much higher prices for their services. Get used to it, it is here to stay.

I call bull.
There have been flights out of Thailand ever since the crisis started and there is NO reason he couldn't have made arrangements to fly Qatar, KLM or Lufthansa back to the EU at ANY time.
My (Thai) g/f flew to Germany in the second week of April with NO hassles of any kind (she was giddy over being able to stretch out across 3 seats and sleep most of the way).
Oh and she paid for the flight herself so it wasn't that expensive.

I get the impression this guy was expecting his embassy to book a (free) flight for him (lol) and of course, when Thailand announced the Visa Amnesty, suddenly he no longer needed to get home for some reason.

Until it looks like maybe the amnesty might end and he might have to pay his own way home.

Sounds a lot like begging I have heard other 

tourist go into.

He came at a time of huge Virus upheaval

at his own well known risk of not getting back

and now he wants sympathy with a side of cash.

 

Sorry ignorant people no longer push 

my sympathy button.

If Thailand gave him 5 days to leave or

go to jail, you can bet your ass he could get gone.

  

I feel for him.

 

Just wants to get home to see his family.

3 minutes ago, owl sees all said:

I feel for him.

 

Just wants to get home to see his family.

He prolly shoulda considered that before blowing all his money on Chang  beer and cheap poontang !!

1 minute ago, Don Mega said:

He prolly shoulda considered that before blowing all his money on Chang  beer and cheap poontang !!

From what I gather; he came to Thailand originally to see temples and experience Buddhism. 

Just now, owl sees all said:

From what I gather; he came to Thailand originally to see temples and experience Buddhism. 

Don't we all ?

1 hour ago, petermik said:

I booked two seats with Eva Air to Heathrow for pals in this same position early May for 21,000 baht....no problems...so why cannot this chap do the same...

Exactly! Absolutely no problem. It´s just one of the guy´s that saw this as an opportunity to longer vacation and are now complain because the economical hurt is too painful.

Hope he get´s home, though.

57 year old rapidly running out of money in Thailand, either spends too much or was skint to start with and should have never taken a holiday here.

Read the full article! The blokes a waster! Full of. kee keow!!

He comes 6.000 miles to holiday in Thailand and has already booked a "luxury" holiday in Mexico! Doesn't sound like a guy who is short of £2.200..

Could be his connecting the Newcastle Chronicle was meant for his wife's ears. Probably found "teerak" and wants to stay. 

Edited June 28, 20206 yr by Lemonltr
Mistake

1 hour ago, Pilotman said:

Sorry, but they don't have anything to answer for.  They are not Charities, they are profitable (hopefully) fully commercial businesses. I think a lot of people around the World are going to have to adjust to flying becoming what it used to be 40 years ago,  somewhat of  a luxury item and not so everyday as it has been in recent years and since low cost airlines become so common.  When this all shakes out, many airlines will have gone to the wall and the remainder with be charging much higher prices for their services. Get used to it, it is here to stay.

Rubbish. Airline fuel is very cheap and airlines will find a way to be competitive no matter. Furthermore, more and more people will be flying in 18-36 months so the prices will once again be affordable. 

Edited June 28, 20206 yr by Ian Nagle

2 hours ago, Dmaxdan said:

How many are domestic though?

I'm leaving tomorrow to EU.

1 minute ago, Borzandy said:

I'm leaving tomorrow to EU.

So would old matey from Chester Le street if he had not blown all his coin visiting temples !!

2 minutes ago, Don Mega said:

So would old matey from Chester Le street if he had not blown all his coin visiting temples !!

Few can resist the call of the Salmon! ????

Edited June 28, 20206 yr by evadgib

Pathetic comments from keyboard *****s who know nothing about someone situation ! ' just buy a ticket remarks '   after the guy had already lost 90,000. Sums you all up 

3 minutes ago, pixelaoffy said:

Pathetic comments from keyboard *****s who know nothing about someone situation ! ' just buy a ticket remarks '   after the guy had already lost 90,000. Sums you all up 

were in the article does it say he lost 90,000 ?

 

A County Durham dad who has been trapped abroad since March hopes he may finally make it home next month.

Allan Coughlan, from Pelton, near Chester-le-Street, County Durham, has been stuck in Thailand since his flight home was cancelled on March 21.

Rapidly running out of money and enduring strict lockdown conditions, Allan, 57, was unable to get on a rescue flight back to Britian as coronavirus spread.

 

After the March 21 flight was called off, Allan had booked a further place on a flight out on March 30, but again his hopes were dashed when Emirates was forced to cancel the flight.

 

Now, trapped in a foreign country and desperate to get home to his family, Allan registered with the British Embassy for flights home, but was left mired in uncertainty as embassy bosses said they still couldn't guarantee he would get home.

Allan said: "This really has been a nightmare from start to finish. There was some limited flights to London but the prices were 88,000 upwards Thai baht [over £2,200].

 

"I am registered with the British embassy about flights out, on Korean air or Aeroflot to Russia, but the emails from the embassy were saying they could not guarantee your onward passage, i.e. You could be quarantined in Korea or Moscow depending on that country's Covid-19 response, plus I didn't have the £2,000 upwards cost for a ticket.

 

"I heard many stories of airlines booking tickets and people going to the airport only to be back at the hotel six hours later saying it had been cancelled: there was even one English guy who was sitting on a Aeroflot flight waiting to fly when he was told to leave the plane because a Russian national was allocated his seat."

 

Now finally booked on a flight, with Emirates on July 4, all Allan can do now is wait and hope he'll finally be making it back to the North East.

He added: "All I could do was wait for Emirates to resume flying and hopefully I will be home on July 4 now."

To add to Alan's distress, until recently he was facing the prospect of having to pay for a holiday to Mexico - despite not having made it back to the UK yet.

 

Long before Covid-19 hit, Allan and his 14-year-old daughter Amber had planned to take the luxury two-week trip together this September. Amber's school had agreed to let her take some time off for the special journey, but, with months of school missed due to lockdown, later rescinded permission, which Allan said was "fair comment".

 

On top of that, the three months away abroad have meant self-employed car dealer Allan can hardly afford the holiday, and is merely eager to get back home. Attempts to get back the much-needed £500 deposit had proved fruitless as the travel company told him his circumstances weren't covered by their exceptions policy.

 

However, after ChronicleLive presented Allan's case to the company, a spokesperson for TUI UK said: " We’re sorry to hear of Mr Coughlan’s situation. We will be in touch with him directly to offer him a full refund."

Allan said he was delighted to be offered the deposit back.

 

2 hours ago, Captain Monday said:

????Rescue flight? A sensationalist article. He was either broke, lacked initiative or actually didn't want to leave. I wouldn't blame him.

But he was a devoted dad!!