Singapore Keeps Australian Terror Scare Pilot

[highdiver]

to remove all doubt in this matter.

the plane was bought from blue waters by Coco Sea planes and registerd to them. I dont know if Mali sadd is a director in that company but the plane was registered to the COMPANY!!! which is a seperate entity from its share holders.

on December 07 it was transfered to a private owner named Mali Sadd and then on January 8th it was transfered again to the australian registrar CASA.

[highdiver]

Gator it seems that our little discussion here has been observed by more and more people... and it seems that it is intresting to many readers.

so when do we sit down to write the script?? holywood is waiting

SBK dont worry as moderator you will be entitled to some royalties...

[LaoPo]

Gator it seems that our little discussion here has been observed by more and more people... and it seems that it is intresting to many readers.

so when do we sit down to write the script?? holywood is waiting

SBK dont worry as moderator you will be entitled to some royalties...

You are both on Samui...why not PM+meet each other and have a drink in a nice bar in Bophut...?

Wish I was there

LaoPo

[sbk]

Gator it seems that our little discussion here has been observed by more and more people... and it seems that it is intresting to many readers.

so when do we sit down to write the script?? holywood is waiting

SBK dont worry as moderator you will be entitled to some royalties...

I am looking forward to the increased income then.

[highdiver]

coming soon to a theatre near you.

the best film of the season.

reserve your tickets now

[Prakanong]

The pilot had his request to go and visit his mother turned down according to the Straits Times at the weekend.

[PoorSucker]

Thanks Highdiver...

Post of the year.

:D :D

[Prakanong]

Please do not let this thread degrade to private PM's. This is fascinating to many on TV and throughout SE Asia interested in aviation. The repercussions of this case will no doubt affect many of us as Thailand and other countries consider how to allow foreign aviators to fly within their boundaries.

Then wait for the qualified investigators to complete their findings. There is a lot of second guessing and ill informed opinion taking place. Questions are being raised on this forum which, if relevant will also be asked by the investigating authority. Some of the posters on this site have set themselves up as judge and jury and feel that they have the right to receive answers they pose,which are not relevant to the incident but are private company matters.

The Straits Times certainly reported that the plane was transferred from Coco to Mali Sadd very recently and that the sale to the aussie company was at a price below market value.

Are you saying they are wrong?

[Gatorade]

Please do not let this thread degrade to private PM's. This is fascinating to many on TV and throughout SE Asia interested in aviation. The repercussions of this case will no doubt affect many of us as Thailand and other countries consider how to allow foreign aviators to fly within their boundaries.

Then wait for the qualified investigators to complete their findings. There is a lot of second guessing and ill informed opinion taking place. Questions are being raised on this forum which, if relevant will also be asked by the investigating authority. Some of the posters on this site have set themselves up as judge and jury and feel that they have the right to receive answers they pose,which are not relevant to the incident but are private company matters.

The Straits Times certainly reported that the plane was transferred from Coco to Mali Sadd very recently and that the sale to the aussie company was at a price below market value.

Are you saying they are wrong?

Which part of the question? The first part has already been answered and the second part is a private matter.

[Gatorade]

Gator it seems that our little discussion here has been observed by more and more people... and it seems that it is intresting to many readers.

so when do we sit down to write the script?? holywood is waiting

SBK dont worry as moderator you will be entitled to some royalties...

Yes I think that is an excellent idea. Loved the poster! And for the script.. is the aircraft in the photos at Changi the same one that resided in Samui? It seems to be older. Did it age prematurely on the long flight?

Haven't seen the old Phuket based 208 amphib around for a little while. :D

[jacksparrow]

to remove all doubt in this matter.

the plane was bought from blue waters by Coco Sea planes and registerd to them. I dont know if Mali sadd is a director in that company but the plane was registered to the COMPANY!!! which is a seperate entity from its share holders.

on December 07 it was transfered to a private owner named Mali Sadd and then on January 8th it was transfered again to the australian registrar CASA.

And you know this how?

Official government records say differently.

[jacksparrow]

Please do not let this thread degrade to private PM's. This is fascinating to many on TV and throughout SE Asia interested in aviation. The repercussions of this case will no doubt affect many of us as Thailand and other countries consider how to allow foreign aviators to fly within their boundaries.

Then wait for the qualified investigators to complete their findings. There is a lot of second guessing and ill informed opinion taking place. Questions are being raised on this forum which, if relevant will also be asked by the investigating authority. Some of the posters on this site have set themselves up as judge and jury and feel that they have the right to receive answers they pose,which are not relevant to the incident but are private company matters.

The Straits Times certainly reported that the plane was transferred from Coco to Mali Sadd very recently and that the sale to the aussie company was at a price below market value.

Are you saying they are wrong?

The paper is wrong. This deal was not a simple one at all... but, then again, who cares. A bill of sale is a bill of sale... legal transfer of ownership. Nothing elses matters.

[Eric1949]

On and on and on and on and on and on and on and on...................................................................

[highdiver]

to remove all doubt in this matter.

the plane was bought from blue waters by Coco Sea planes and registerd to them. I dont know if Mali sadd is a director in that company but the plane was registered to the COMPANY!!! which is a seperate entity from its share holders.

on December 07 it was transfered to a private owner named Mali Sadd and then on January 8th it was transfered again to the australian registrar CASA.

And you know this how?

Official government records say differently.

if you would take time to read th posts in the page before you would see the answer.

while helping a friend do some paper work for his private jet I found the following in the Thai civil aircraft register .

HS-CCO Cessna 208 floatplane c/n 20800278 ex N208GT, HS-BWA(2)

R25-Jul-05 to Coco Seaplane; ownership change to Mrs. Mali Sadd; current Dec-07; canx Jan-08; to VH-NRP

the above plane was registered to Coco sea planes from july 2005 and then suddenly was cahnged to Mali Sadd December 7th and then less then a month to the australians.

and this is the official thai goverment register for the plane.

[highdiver]

rumours from Singapore say the court date has been moved to friday...

[sriracha john]

as are most things... it came down to money... and corruption...

Cessna's F-16 intercept 'caused by lies'

An Australian aboard a plane intercepted by fighter jets in Singapore says the dramatic incident was the result of lies told by someone in Thailand angry at being denied a bribe.

Singapore scrambled F-16 fighter jets to intercept a Cessna 208, flown by Broome pilot Rhys Thomas, on January 22, saying it had not registered a flight plan.

The Australian-registered Cessna, en route from Thailand to Australia, was then escorted to land at Singapore's Changi Airport.

Commercial airspace over the airport was locked down for 50 minutes, forcing at least 16 aircraft to circle, delaying arrivals and departures and costing airlines thousands of dollars in fuel.

Mr Thomas was charged with flying an aircraft without a certificate of airworthiness and was granted bail.

His passenger, Darren Johnson, an engineer for Horizontal Falls Adventure Tours in the Kimberley, said the real facts of the matter had been covered up.

"The real reason our aircraft was assessed as a security threat by Singapore is that someone deliberately made false statements about our aircraft to Singapore authorities whilst we were in flight,'' Mr Johnson said.

"These included (that the) aircraft was stolen, (the) aircraft was not registered and (the) aircraft had left Thai airspace under suspicious circumstances.

"Someone was angry with Mr Thomas because he refused to pay bribes in Thailand.

"I witnessed bribes being asked by two Thai individuals at the time of settlement of the purchase of the aircraft at Koh Samui on January 21.''

Mr Johnson said that the next day, January 22, Mr Thomas decided to divert to Singapore after the plane developed a landing gear problem while doing an authorised test run to Koh Samui, an island in southern Thailand.

He said Mr Thomas notified Singaporean authorities of the flight plan by radio, which was accepted and the plane cleared by Singapore to land at Seletar airport.

The aircraft, however, was intercepted by fighter jets over Singapore and escorted to land at Changi.

Mr Johnson said the next day it was reported that Singapore had no flight plan or details of the flight, that the plane had tried to intrude into Singapore airspace without a clearance and was in no radio contact.

Singapore authorities acted appropriately in scrambling their jets in response to the false information they received, Mr Johnson said.

"Given the ... information, the Singapore Air Force acted appropriately and professionally and we are very lucky not to have been shot down,'' he said.

Mr Johnson arrived back in Perth last Sunday but Mr Thomas remains in Singapore after being refused permission to return to Australia on compassionate grounds, after his mother suffered a heart attack.

Mr Thomas, who is 59, was due to appear at a pre-trial conference today and faces a maximum penalty of one year's jail, a $3,900 fine or both.

Mr Johnson was released without charge.

He said he was concerned about Mr Thomas, who was under a large amount of stress.

- Melbourne Herald Sun

[LaoPo]

So, that's at least one side of the story from the passenger.

The question remains:

WHY would two Thai individuals ask for a bribe if the plane, papers and flight plan were in order ?

"....at the time of settlement of the purchase of the aircraft at Koh Samui on January 21.''

And the flight to S'pore was Jan 22.

How would those two Thai individuals know that the plane had problems the next day and phone/inform the Singaporean authorities ?

The book isn't finished yet...

LaoPo

[Prakanong]

So he diverted on his flight Samui > Samui to Singapore after a fault was found????

<deleted> - why all the way to Singapore - no other airfields closer or even Samui?

A pack of lies to cover up the fact the plane was sold on the cheap after transfer from Coco to an individual as Coco is in financial difficulty and the plane might have been siezed as collateral for creditors

Thats the story down here in Singapore and if they think the whitewash above is going to be beleived then they are even bigger numpties.

[LaoPo]

So he diverted on his flight Samui > Samui to Singapore after a fault was found????

<deleted> - why all the way to Singapore - no other airfields closer or even Samui?

A pack of lies to cover up the fact the plane was sold on the cheap after transfer from Coco to an individual as Coco is in financial difficulty and the plane might have been siezed as collateral for creditors

Thats the story down here in Singapore and if they think the whitewash above is going to be beleived then they are even bigger numpties.

...the plane (owned by Coco/Mr. Sadd) was sold to Mrs. Sadd and immediately sold by her to the Australians.

Mr. Sadd could have sold it himself........or...........

...Right !

LaoPo

[Naam]

i am following this story with great interest because it concerns us expats in Thailand. if Australia goes to war with Singapore we might suffer a few "smart" bombs too, isn't it? after all (if i'm not mistaken) Singapore is located between Bangkok and Pattaya just a hopper from Chonburi and australian air force pilots are well known for their lack of geographical knowledge.

p.s. my wife is quite worried too and asked me whether she should stock some basic food stuff such as rice, cooking oil and potatoe chips. but i calmed her down and told her to make sure that no less than a dozen bottles of Port and Sherry (each) are in the larder.

[highdiver]

right

so first it was a qulified engn eer who flew as crew on this flight then when they landed in Singapore he was "passenger" and now that he is back in austalia he says he an an engeneer and its a cover up..... yeh right mate

clearly somone in australia is taking the time to explain this fuc_kup....

wonder how he will explain the fuc_kup with the pilots gone missing in Africa and why the same pilot had something to with that as well???

I wonder how he first court hearing did today in Singapore??

now we need to amend the movie script and add the 2 shady Thai men who are at the airport demanding bribe for the plane on the 21st.... but wait the registration was transfered after the purchase on the 8th.... wow those thai guys waited for nearly 2 weeks after the compleation of the transfer to ask for bribes..... knowing a little bit about thai people I belive this sounds right......

[beech]

It officially went on the Australian register on 8th January in Mary Cummins name.

Didnt think Mali would have authorised it to be taken off the thai register. until it was FULLY paid for.

Cause once its off the thai register and CASA is notified by the Thai authorities, this then paves the way to put it on the Australian Register and simply flown out of Thailand whenever the pilot chooses.

And the final transaction occurred 21st January?

13 Days AFTER it was put into Mary's Name as VH-NRP.

Then the runner occurred under sus cicumtances the very next day.

Hey Jack - When did you really get the gear back down?

Or did you wait till entering the circuit area in Singa?

Mali is a fine upstanding citizen. I met her once!

The intro of the two Thai bad guys looking for bribes comes from an employee of Mary's now he is outta Singa.

Convenient.

And by the way - lets get the tapes on all the Pilots so called radio transmissions - or lack of them.

LOOK INTO THE MONEY TRAIL as well and if this occurs there is -

More to come...............

[khall64au]

Singapore terror scare cover-up claim

March 7, 2008 - 5:03PM

Singapore keeps Australian terror scare pilot

An Australian aboard a plane intercepted by fighter jets in Singapore says the dramatic incident was the result of lies told by someone in Thailand angry at being denied a bribe.

Singapore scrambled F-16 fighter jets to intercept a Cessna 208, flown by Broome pilot Rhys Thomas, on January 22, saying it had not registered a flight plan.

The Australian-registered Cessna, en route from Thailand to Australia, was then escorted to land at Singapore's Changi Airport.

Commercial airspace over the airport was locked down for 50 minutes, forcing at least 16 aircraft to circle, delaying arrivals and departures and costing airlines thousands of dollars in fuel.

Mr Thomas was charged with flying an aircraft without a certificate of airworthiness and was granted bail.

His passenger, Darren Johnson, an engineer for Horizontal Falls Adventure Tours in the Kimberley, said the real facts of the matter had been covered up.

"The real reason our aircraft was assessed as a security threat by Singapore is that someone deliberately made false statements about our aircraft to Singapore authorities whilst we were in flight," Mr Johnson said.

"These included (that the) aircraft was stolen, (the) aircraft was not registered and (the) aircraft had left Thai airspace under suspicious circumstances.

"Someone was angry with Mr Thomas because he refused to pay bribes in Thailand.

"I witnessed bribes being asked by two Thai individuals at the time of settlement of the purchase of the aircraft at Koh Samui on January 21."

Mr Johnson said that the next day, January 22, Mr Thomas decided to divert to Singapore after the plane developed a landing gear problem while doing an authorised test run to Koh Samui, an island in southern Thailand.

He said Mr Thomas notified Singaporean authorities of the flight plan by radio, which was accepted and the plane cleared by Singapore to land at Seletar airport.

The aircraft, however, was intercepted by fighter jets over Singapore and escorted to land at Changi.

Mr Johnson said the next day it was reported that Singapore had no flight plan or details of the flight, that the plane had tried to intrude into Singapore airspace without a clearance and was in no radio contact.

Singapore authorities acted appropriately in scrambling their jets in response to the false information they received, Mr Johnson said.

"Given the ... information, the Singapore Air Force acted appropriately and professionally and we are very lucky not to have been shot down," he said.

Mr Johnson arrived back in Perth last Sunday but Mr Thomas remains in Singapore after being refused permission to return to Australia on compassionate grounds, after his mother suffered a heart attack.

Mr Thomas, who is 59, was due to appear at a pre-trial conference today and faces a maximum penalty of one year's jail, a $3900 fine or both.

Mr Johnson was released without charge.

He said he was concerned about Mr Thomas, who was under a large amount of stress.

AAP

[SamuiBond]

It was told in the beginning that the plane was out of radars' sight for a good while. Maybe good while to drop someone off to a waiting boat outside Thai border. For example someone that couldn't actually otherwise leave Thailand leagally. Where is this ex-Coco owner guy now?

How does that add spice to speculations?

Edited March 8, 2008 by SamuiBond

[Thai at Heart]

It was told in the beginning that the plane was out of radars' sight for a good while. Maybe good while to drop someone off to a waiting boat outside Thai border. For example someone that couldn't actually otherwise leave Thailand leagally. Where is this ex-Coco owner guy now?

How does that add spice to speculations?

The thot plickens!

[jacksparrow]

Looks like there has been a bit of activity... and even more speculation here lately.

Its is quite obvious that very few people on this thread have any REAL LIFE experience doing business in Thailand, and particularly Samui? From some of the posts this is quite apparant.

For one thing... nothing is as simple as it seems in Thailand... what appears to be the truth the nevery the truth, and truth doesn't matter whatsoever... only appearances matter.

So, the story from the "engineer" is quite plausible and likely given the situation in Samui, Coco's situation, and the way this deal was structured.

For the record, the deal was completed through a registered aircraft broker in cash at a value far in excess of the assessed, current state condition of the aircraft. There were two bidders and the one with cash on hand won the deal. Simple as that. Funds were dispersed to pay of registered liens and the remainder remitted

to Mali and Alan Saad.

So, apparantly, someone who thought they were owned money that was to be paid by the sale of the aircraft didn't get paid (read into this whatever you like... worst case is probably correct) and tried to stop it from leaving thailand. It wouldn't be difficult to call SG ATC and claim any plane was a terrorist threat given the condition of the world today.

FWIW, I would never do business with anyone from Coco... Mali, Alan, or anyone else. haven't been paid. ****defamatory opinions removed***

Oh, and there are "rumors" of loan sharks worse being involved in this.. go figure.

[Daisy75]

What makes business in Samui different from the rest of Thailand?

[LaoPo]

Looks like there has been a bit of activity... and even more speculation here lately.

Its is quite obvious that very few people on this thread have any REAL LIFE experience doing business in Thailand, and particularly Samui? From some of the posts this is quite apparant.

For one thing... nothing is as simple as it seems in Thailand... what appears to be the truth the nevery the truth, and truth doesn't matter whatsoever... only appearances matter.

So, the story from the "engineer" is quite plausible and likely given the situation in Samui, Coco's situation, and the way this deal was structured.

For the record, the deal was completed through a registered aircraft broker in cash at a value far in excess of the assessed, current state condition of the aircraft. There were two bidders and the one with cash on hand won the deal. Simple as that. Funds were dispersed to pay of registered liens and the remainder remitted

to Mali and Alan Saad.

So, apparantly, someone who thought they were owned money that was to be paid by the sale of the aircraft didn't get paid (read into this whatever you like... worst case is probably correct) and tried to stop it from leaving thailand. It wouldn't be difficult to call SG ATC and claim any plane was a terrorist threat given the condition of the world today.

FWIW, I would never do business with anyone from Coco... Mali, Alan, or anyone else. haven't been paid. ****defamatory opinions removed***

Oh, and there are "rumors" of loan sharks worse being involved in this.. go figure.

All is clear as glass now

LaoPo

[Farma]

Aussie pilot fined for air intrusion

From correspondents in Singapore

April 01, 2008 07:25pm

AN Australian pilot whose intrusion into Singapore airspace caused fighter jets to scramble and brought commercial air traffic to a halt was today fined 5000 Singapore dollars ($3970).

Rhys Henry Thomas, 59, of Broome in Western Australia, pleaded guilty yesterday to flying a Cessna float plane without an airworthiness certificate, newspapers reported.

Judge Danielle Yeow ordered the former Ansett pilot to pay the maximum fine, but Thomas escaped a possible jail term of up to one year.

Singapore scrambled two F-16 fighter jets on January 22 to intercept Thomas' Cessna, which defence officials said did not have an approved flight plan.

His lawyer, Salem Ibrahim, told the court that Thomas had noticed a problem with the plane's landing gear after he took off from the Thai resort island of Koh Samui.

He decided to fly on and burn off the plane's dangerous fuel load before attempting a landing at Singapore's secondary Seletar Airport, which he chose partly because of its maintenance facilities, Mr Salem said.

Continued here http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0...5003402,00.html

[LaoPo]

Aussie pilot fined for air intrusion

From correspondents in Singapore

April 01, 2008 07:25pm

AN Australian pilot whose intrusion into Singapore airspace caused fighter jets to scramble and brought commercial air traffic to a halt was today fined 5000 Singapore dollars ($3970).

Rhys Henry Thomas, 59, of Broome in Western Australia, pleaded guilty yesterday to flying a Cessna float plane without an airworthiness certificate, newspapers reported.

Judge Danielle Yeow ordered the former Ansett pilot to pay the maximum fine, but Thomas escaped a possible jail term of up to one year.

Singapore scrambled two F-16 fighter jets on January 22 to intercept Thomas' Cessna, which defence officials said did not have an approved flight plan.

His lawyer, Salem Ibrahim, told the court that Thomas had noticed a problem with the plane's landing gear after he took off from the Thai resort island of Koh Samui.

He decided to fly on and burn off the plane's dangerous fuel load before attempting a landing at Singapore's secondary Seletar Airport, which he chose partly because of its maintenance facilities, Mr Salem said.

Continued here http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0...5003402,00.html

""I am pleased that the ordeal is finally over. The only thing I want to do now is to catch the next flight out of Singapore to go back to Australia to see my mother," Thomas said."

No word about the sea plane....

LaoPo