Flight TG669 skids off runway at Suvarnabhumi Airport

[Rama]

18 years is not old for a plane. A commercial plane is not a singular unit, it is rather made up of components that can age differently. Engines age differently than wings and wings age differently than the airplane body. Electronics in cockpits and interiors can age differently also. An 18 year old plane might have engines that are 5 years old, wings that are 3 years old.

[Tomtomtom69]

Hmm...12 people injured, some due to smoke inhalation..they do not sound "safe" to me.

Most likely, the injured parties were uncouth Chinese passengers, who had opened their seatbelts and trying to collect their carry-on luggage from the overhead storage immediately after the plane touched down....... that is the usual scenario on most Chinese flights.

while pushing and shoving everyone else out of the way , once the seatbelt off signal is given.

Then of course the increasingly assertive THAI crew tell them to SIT DOWN! Although interestingly, this scenario is becoming a little less common than just a couple of years ago, especially on THAI's Kunming flights. Indian flights are even worse though - the commotion in the cabin is something that needs to be seen to be believed.

[kjhbigv]

About the painting over of the Logo, that is standard practice for evey airline I have worked for.

Don't state facts like that on ThaiVisa,

Let the ignorant miserable masses here believe it's all a conspiracy, a unique Thai thing, most of all, it's something for them to Bash the whole country for.

If this had happened in Switzerland, it would have been just another Aviation incident, these things happen etc etc, in Thailand it's lack of education, Thaksins fault, nobody cares, bad pilots, poor maintenance etc etc.

The painting over the Logo ( Common Practice ) will be put down to 'Face', and provide more Thai bashing opportunities.

I am struggling to find ONE other airline crash picture where this is "common practice". Found plenty of airline crash pictures but none with the logo painted out.

[saltandpepper]

 

18 years old aircraft ....... thats quite a lot ....

 

Not it is not!

it is not because it is 18 years old that it is an old aircraft. If the maintenance is performed as recommended by the maker, and according to international regulation, an aircraft is OK to fly way longer than 18 years as safely as any brand new plane

[EyesWideOpen]

About the painting over of the Logo, that is standard practice for evey airline I have worked for.

Don't state facts like that on ThaiVisa,

Let the ignorant miserable masses here believe it's all a conspiracy, a unique Thai thing, most of all, it's something for them to Bash the whole country for.

If this had happened in Switzerland, it would have been just another Aviation incident, these things happen etc etc, in Thailand it's lack of education, Thaksins fault, nobody cares, bad pilots, poor maintenance etc etc.

The painting over the Logo ( Common Practice ) will be put down to 'Face', and provide more Thai bashing opportunities.

I am struggling to find ONE other airline crash picture where this is "common practice". Found plenty of airline crash pictures but none with the logo painted out.

Here let me help you out. Also you can try an amazing product called google ....

Search " do airlines paint out their logo after a crash "

Endless examples will come up. This is really a side issue to the crash itself, it just seems

sort of funny when we all know who operated the plane. But I guess corporate headquarters

does not see it that way..... :-)

Edited September 9, 2013 by EyesWideOpen

[Globeman]

Quite strange that the 2 'quality' English newspapers have hardly picked up on this , while foreign media have.

The accident occurred after the newspapers closed - around 10-11pm. The websites are carrying the news.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

I am a retired Captain from a major international airline. Let me say that I agree that this could hardly be considered a "Safe Landing". Also, All airliners are certified to fly on one engine. Even if they have 4 (Exceptions being some Russian and military planes with many engines. Losing an engine is basically not an emergency in the aircraft manual, but only an abnormality procedure.

What happened this morning is unknown. There are many possibilities that I could list, but speculation is worthless. Wait for the facts to come out and keep the

comments on the accident to those of sympathy for the injured.

Thai Airways Airbus 330 skidded off Bangkok runway; 12 passengers injured

The Director of the Suvarnabhumi Airport revealed that the airbus reported a fire in its engine and took an emergency landing, before sliding off track. Most of the passengers were Chinese. Fortunately, only a small number of passengers were hurt, with only 3 being sent to the nearest hospital. The eastern runway is currently out of use and may cause slight delays to other flights as flight re-scheduling is necessary, the Director said.

-- NNT 2013-09-09

I'm not among those speculating about the causes at this point, because the information being publicly reported is too unreliable and scattered.

This latest announcement quotes the airport director as saying there was an engine fire and emergency landing declared FIRST, before the skidding off the runway. Which is contrary to the prior news reports posted here.

Of course, this same NNT report also talks about damage to the "propellers" of the Airbus jet... So perhaps best taken with a grain of salt.

[wileycoyote]

Glad all are safe

[Mampara]

If u look at the B/Post u will see a photograph of workers trying to cover up the national flag and the Thai airways emblem. This shows the true charter of the people from this country. always trying to hide the truth from the world. not a honest bone in the body. its actually quite embarrassing and shameful.

Edited September 9, 2013 by metisdead
Bold font removed. If you continue to post using bold fonts, your posts will simply disappear.

[kjhbigv]

About the painting over of the Logo, that is standard practice for evey airline I have worked for.

Don't state facts like that on ThaiVisa,

Let the ignorant miserable masses here believe it's all a conspiracy, a unique Thai thing, most of all, it's something for them to Bash the whole country for.

If this had happened in Switzerland, it would have been just another Aviation incident, these things happen etc etc, in Thailand it's lack of education, Thaksins fault, nobody cares, bad pilots, poor maintenance etc etc.

The painting over the Logo ( Common Practice ) will be put down to 'Face', and provide more Thai bashing opportunities.

I am struggling to find ONE other airline crash picture where this is "common practice". Found plenty of airline crash pictures but none with the logo painted out.

You found ONE.....although not blocked out in one of the pictures! When I do a Google search, it is hard to find evidence that this is "common practice". Only found 3/4 examples! Not exactly "common practice".

A strange practice though! To me.....it sends out the message "cover up"......understand "face" and all that but just a strange practice IMO.

Anyway....back on topic.

Edited September 9, 2013 by kjhbigv

[EyesWideOpen]

If u look at the B/Post u will see a photograph of workers trying to cover up the national flag and the Thai airways emblem. This shows the true charter of the people from this country. always trying to hide the truth from the world. not a honest bone in the body. its actually quite embarrassing and shameful.

Not a Thai issue. Most airlines will try to do this, as long as the transportation investigation does not

try to stop them... Here is a China Airlines plane after a rough landing...

[Thait Spot]

From what I have heard I think I'd like to raise the following points:

The "injuries" were smoke inhalation rather than physical.

The landing was routine until the nose gear connected with the runway. At this time there was a "wobble" and the wheel came off (maintenance issue or component failure? Wait for the report)

The plane continued on its own momentum on the pin - tough to steer with no front wheel - until it veered off and left the runway

In all probability there was some debris that entered the engine and caused the fire - which was effectively dealt with

[bubba]

Thai Airways should really be put out of it's misery.

Incompetent management, declining service & outrageous prices are just the tip of the iceberg.

In the words of Gordon Ramsay, "Shut it down!"

You have the option of flying on Air Asia or Jet Star. TG's service is superior and that costs money.

If you believe that airlines should give 4* service at 2* costs, then I suggest you go and start your own airline and subsidize all the pax with a sense of self entitlement. TG's pricing is that it reflects the market. It's hard for some people to grasp the concept.

Yes, TG's service and product has become tarnished, but it is still way better than what is on offer in the EU and North America, and the prices are certainly better. Round trip in J class on TG is still often less than 10,000 baht, Try and book an RT between LHR and CDG in J for that.

The TG J class fare at approx. 21,000 baht Bkk-HKG still beats the completion.

Emirates business class from BKK- HKG r/t: 19,260 baht r/t. That's A380 service that stands head and shoulders better than Thai, from the Emirates lounge at Suvaranabhumi to the food and service onboard.

Cathay Pacific business class from BKK-HKG r/t: 19,030 baht. Ditto above.

So which competition does your 21,000 baht BKK-HKG fare on TG beat out? Not considering TG's inferior lounges, shabby, last generation business class seating, and dreadful food service.

[EyesWideOpen]

You found ONE.....although not blocked out in one of the pictures! When I do a Google search, it is hard to find evidence that this is "common practice".

A strange practice though! To me.....it sends out the message "cover up"......understand "face" and all that but just a strange practice IMO.

Anyway....back on topic.

Wow. Let.....me.....speak.....slowly...... The......top......part......of......the......picture.......is.......the

.......before......photo. And......the.......bottom......part.....is.......after.......the......logo......was......painted

........out.

[PoorSucker]

You found ONE.....although not blocked out in one of the pictures! When I do a Google search, it is hard to find evidence that this is "common practice".

Sweden.

Italy.

Australia.

[Dibbler]

The bizarre thing is the second thing they did after evacuating passengers was to get out some black paint and cover up the THAI logo on the plane!!!! As if covering up the logo somehow would prevent people from figuring out the airline involved. The full story is reported on today's The Australian website's front page.

[sawadee1947]

...last weeks the train and now even the planes...? When will they learn...and ACT !!!!!

[kjhbigv]

You found ONE.....although not blocked out in one of the pictures! When I do a Google search, it is hard to find evidence that this is "common practice".

A strange practice though! To me.....it sends out the message "cover up"......understand "face" and all that but just a strange practice IMO.

Anyway....back on topic.

Wow. Let.....me.....speak.....slowly...... The......top......part......of......the......picture.......is.......the

.......before......photo. And......the.......bottom......part.....is.......after.......the......logo......was......painted

........out.

Yeah yeah got that....you are saying it is "common practice" to do this....it is quite evident that IT IS NOT! All I have seen is a pic from 1999 (above) and another equally historic picture. Not exactly 'common practice"! Why don't you just do a Google search for "Airline Crash" and see how many of the 100's of crash photo's have the logo's covered up! "Common practice"????

Not the majority but a small minority!

Edited September 9, 2013 by kjhbigv

[GeorgeO]

Modern planes are designed to fly with one engine 'not functioning'. This is probably not a Thai Airways problem rather it may have been one of a variety of problems. Bird strike, faulty engine component. This type of incident is not unusual however the good news is that all survived. Remember the Qantas flight out of Singapore a few years ago. Engine malfunctioned yet the crew did a magnificent job of landing a fully loaded 380 boeing safely.

You're probably spot on with your first suggestion (bird strike).

Over recent months, there has been a massive influx of Openbill Storks on Thana City Golf Course, which is right on the Suvarnabhumi flight path. When one of these things gets a bit of a fright, they all take off in a huge flock and fly at exactly the right height for a plane strike.

[poohy]

18 years is not old for a plane. A commercial plane is not a singular unit, it is rather made up of components that can age differently. Engines age differently than wings and wings age differently than the airplane body. Electronics in cockpits and interiors can age differently also. An 18 year old plane might have engines that are 5 years old, wings that are 3 years old.

Sounds like the famous Triggers broom from 'Only Fool and Horses"...... its 18 years old Del, its had 12 new heads and 6 new handles ( or words to that effect)

[itchybum]

If u look at the B/Post u will see a photograph of workers trying to cover up the national flag and the Thai airways emblem. This shows the true charter of the people from this country. always trying to hide the truth from the world. not a honest bone in the body. its actually quite embarrassing and shameful.

While I agree......other airlines do it also, most recent that comes to mind I think was the Lionair plane at Bali earlier this year.

I think it is to hide from the eyes of the flying public, would not want to scare passengers away from your airline with such a huge kickass billboard as a 747 laying on the side of the runway shouting 'fly with us'

[TackyToo]

Why is it with Thai accidents, planes, trains, buses, boats, taxis anything - the newspaper never manages to interview any passengers or victims?

Maybe because victims priority is not on "losing face" like the clowns doing the rushed paint job. I wonder what they will tell passengers if asked which airline does the crashed one belong to.

They say a guy doing a paint job on a car makes more money here than a mechanic. One can only hope that don't apply to Thai Airways staff.

Lousy paint job- white would have done better

[webfact]

UPDATE:
Broken landing gear cited as cause for THAI accident
The Nation


Photo : Wing Magazine (Twitter)

BANGKOK: -- The initial investigation into the accident that saw a THAI aircraft skidding off the runaway while trying to land at Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi Airport on Sunday has revealed it was caused by a problem with the back right landing gear.

Department of Civil Aviation director general Voradej Harnprasert said this caused the plane to lose balance and skid off the runway. The slide resulted in the engine on the right wing to make contact with the ground, causing sparks and fire at the body of the plane.

He said the black box would be checked to identify the exact details of the incident. Flight TG 679 from Guangzhou in China with 288 passengers and 14 crew members on board was about to land when it slid off the runway at about 11.20pm Sunday night.

The captain managed to stop the aircraft and passengers were evacuated safely. Thirteen people suffered minor injuries.

THAI president Sorajak Kasemsuvan said earlier that the flight had left Guangzhou at 9.25pm local time and arrived at Suvarnabhumi at 11.20pm.

Meanwhile Rawewan Netrakavesna, the airport's general manager, said the eastern runway had been closed and the aircraft remained in the spot where it left the runway. Airports of Thailand (AoT) may consider diverting some flights to Don Mueang Airport to ease congestion.

She said an investigative team from the Civil Aviation Department had already arrived the scene to investigate.

Rawewan said the airport would evaluate the damage to the runway, but believed it could be fixed in one day.


-- The Nation 2013-09-09

[laurentbkk]

its funny to see that the name THAI has been deleted or covered on the foreign papers pictures... Are they afraid of bad publicity ?

[mikemac]

Said it before and I will say it again, I am scared to travel in Thailand anymore no matter the method of transport.

Must be what is keeping you here.

Imagine being one of the many foreigners here who wanted to leave Thailand because it is so dangerous, and also being too afraid to travel to the airport because of the dangers of travel here. Talk about Groundhog Day and Catch 22 !

Not surprised there are so many resident Thai bashers putting the boot into our national airline, the name does contain the word "Thai" after all.

When I think about it, after reading so many dumb and lame posts condemning the airline, I am glad I fly with them regularly. The fact that these posters do not fly Thai has raised the standard of my fellow passengers by miles !

Have done four flights between Thailand and Australia so far this year, and about six domestic flights and have nothing but good things to say about them.

[laurentbkk]

ok got the reply of my comment ... normal practice for every airlines .....

[laurentbkk]

I just guess those kind of accidents can happen to any airlines ... I dont understand many of the comments saying no more thai airways or no more airbus ..... All planes now follow international regulation but as in HK turbulences is the weather fault .... and for this problem on thai airways .... the investigation will tell ... good that no one was badly hurt...

[Bpuumike]

14 hurt as plane skids off runway in Bangkok: airline

BANGKOK, September 9, 2013 (AFP) - A Thai Airways plane skidded off the runway in Bangkok after the landing gear malfunctioned, slightly injuring more than a dozen passengers as they evacuated the jet, the airline said Monday.

The incident late on Sunday at Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi Airport involved an Airbus 330-300 carrying 288 passengers and 14 crew members on a flight from Guangzhou in southern China, the carrier said.

The plane was seen resting on grass on Monday morning next to the runway with its evacuation slides still deployed and the Thai Airways name and logo hastily covered up.

"Sparks were noticed from the vicinity of the right landing gear near the engine; the matter is under investigation," the airline said in a statement.

"The captain took control of the aircraft until it came to a complete stop and passengers were evacuated from the aircraft emergency exits. The operation was conducted by the captain and cabin crew strictly according to emergency procedures."

About 14 people were slightly injured when they escaped down the emergency slides, Thai Airways president Sorajak Kasemsuvan told local television.

"They were sent to hospital but most of them received treatment and were discharged," he added.

The carrier said it would take about 24 hours to remove the aircraft, which could cause flight delays.

The incident comes just over a week after dozens of passengers and crew were injured when a Thai Airways A380 superjumbo hit severe turbulence during a flight from Bangkok to Hong Kong.

-- (c) Copyright AFP 2013-09-09

Yup, grab magazines/newspapers and stuff them down the back of your trousers (sorry ladies, do as you think best) to prevent friction burn on the slides.

[HerbalEd]

18 years old aircraft ....... thats quite a lot ....

Not really.

[harrry]

From the twitter photo of the railway track the nose gear made straight down the middle of the runnway until it swerved off towards the end of its run the pilots did an amazing job.

Incidents can happen with all aircraft from mechanical failure remember the big boing747 which shot out its own roof in flight when an oygen cylynder failed.

Everything I have seen is that Thai have some very competant pilots.