THAI president made clarification over Prawit's controversial Hawaii flight

[webfact]

THAI president made clarification over controversial Hawaii flight

 

 

BANGKOK: -- Thai Airways International president Charamporn Jotikasthira clarified on Wednesday that the price quoted by the airline to the office of the prime minister’s secretary-general for chartered flight service for General Prawit Wongsuwan’s delegation to Hawaii was just an estimated price between government agencies and the actual price would be quoted by the airline once the trip was completed.

 

As for the on-board catering for the delegation, he disclosed that THAI proposed menus to the delegation to choose before the trip to Hawaii in line with the airline’s premium-grade service standard.

 

Food was arranged with flying times taken into consideration – 12.30 hours for the Bangkok-Hawaii flight and 12.45 hours for the return flight. There were altogether four main meals plus snacks throughout the journey and food reserves in case the flights did not go in accordance with plan, explained Mr Charamporn.

 

Full story: http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/thai-president-made-clarification-controversial-hawaii-flight/

 

-- © Copyright Thai PBS 2016-10-06

[PatOngo]

"the actual price would be quoted by the airline once the trip was completed".

Sound business practice that, deliver the quote after the job is done!.....Transparency+!!!

[jerojero]

Four meals during a 12 hour direct flight? Plus snacks? oink oink.

[Gringogazzer]

Ah, so the "gin khao" banter goes on from the paddy fields to the higher echelons of office...
Almost forgot about the ฿20m quote.

[aussieinthailand]

So the meals supplied were inline with Thai Air's premium grade service.

So the claim "we only had normal Thai food like noodles" is a PORKY PIE.

[Sphere]

The big question is - did the stewardess show up again after pouring the first half-a-glass of wine?

[colinneil]

Standard business practice my a..e

Standard practice is to quote before not after.

Just another load of b.....t , something anybody connected with these people are getting very good at.

Time to buy a bigger trough, as the present 1 is getting too small for all the extra snouts.

[sharecropper]

I've seen this classic lie used before here, suggesting the first figure was 'just a quote' and not a formal cost even though the services were then supplied on that basis (was it the TV screens in Government House?). A bit like "That's not me. The tape's been doctored" - it's pathetic.

 

If this guy's airline really do business like this, he should be SACKED.

[yellowboat]

There will be endless clarifications until everyone is warn out.  It is just the fringe benefits of being an unelected government without a mandate from the people.  Do what you want.  You are unaccountable. 

[mikebell]

'Thirty-eight business-class tickets purchased for 150,000 baht each would have cost a total of 5.7 million baht, or less than one-third the estimated cost of the chartered flight. '  Letter in BKK Post.

Admittedly this is not a direct flight but involves changing planes somewhere in Asia.  It would have added four hours to the flight time and saved the tax payers a lot.

[Brer Fox]

The food should have been army ration packs in keeping with military tradition and austerity. No mention of the booze but you can bet it wasn't Sangsom or Lao Khao. 

[geriatrickid]

2 hours ago, jerojero said:

Four meals during a 12 hour direct flight? Plus snacks? oink oink.

 

No. You misunderstood. 

Business class service on a premium airline typically  offers an option of anywhere from  3 to 10  main options with  5-7 options available exclusively to   pax who pre-order. For example, you can pre order on AF or KLM or  BR.

 

Meal service on a 12 hour flight typically consists of a main meal featuring a starter, a small side  salad, the main course, desert, and a selection of 204 cheeses with grapes.  There are anytime snacks usually consisting of   instant  noodles, dimsum, ice cream, a sandwich, crisps, fruit etc. 90 minutes before arrival there is usually a full breakfast or light lunch served.

 

Thai catering is nothing special. It's one of the few airlines that  doesn't plate its  premium class meals and instead heats them in the serving plate. makes for a  dried out soggy mess. Thai main meal if catering for  Thais will feature fish, or curry or  some sort of gooey pork. Hardly expensive fare.

 

 

[geriatrickid]

28 minutes ago, sharecropper said:

I've seen this classic lie used before here, suggesting the first figure was 'just a quote' and not a formal cost even though the services were then supplied on that basis (was it the TV screens in Government House?). A bit like "That's not me. The tape's been doctored" - it's pathetic.

 

If this guy's airline really do business like this, he should be SACKED.

 

The airline is controlled by the military administration and its board and senior managers are stacked with ex military or people who have links to the military.

They are not going to sack anyone.

[AGareth2]

3 minutes ago, geriatrickid said:

 

No. You misunderstood. 

Business class service on a premium airline typically  offers an option of anywhere from  3 to 10  main options with  5-7 options available exclusively to   pax who pre-order. For example, you can pre order on AF or KLM or  BR.

 

Meal service on a 12 hour flight typically consists of a main meal featuring a starter, a small side  salad, the main course, desert, and a selection of 204 cheeses with grapes.  There are anytime snacks usually consisting of   instant  noodles, dimsum, ice cream, a sandwich, crisps, fruit etc. 90 minutes before arrival there is usually a full breakfast or light lunch served.

 

Thai catering is nothing special. It's one of the few airlines that  doesn't plate its  premium class meals and instead heats them in the serving plate. makes for a  dried out soggy mess. Thai main meal if catering for  Thais will feature fish, or curry or  some sort of gooey pork. Hardly expensive fare.

 

 

but still cost 15 k per person

[geriatrickid]

1 hour ago, aussieinthailand said:

So the meals supplied were inline with Thai Air's premium grade service.

So the claim "we only had normal Thai food like noodles" is a PORKY PIE.

 

Ever fly in J or F  with TG?  My last  lunch in J to  europe was a  hot dog. It was called a bratwurst, but looked like it was collected the night before from 7-11.  My last F meal from Europe consisted of overcooked dried out noodles with hard chunks of chicken. Inedible.    I would have been lucky to have had a  pork pie.

[thaibook]

Unless there are specific numerical answers such to questions such as those below it simply sounds as the pathetic justification for a publicly quoted company to engage in dubious practices and for the CEO to keep his job - which I gather is the gift of the military.

 

let us try to be specific.  What other flight is 12 - 13 hours long?

Is premium grade the same as first class or better?

what was the quoted cost for the food and drink for the flight?

what was the menu - what were the main meals and what snacks were available?

were any drinks served that are not freely available on first class service, eg which whisky and which brandy was served?

What is the Thai budget for food and drink per first class passenger on a flight from BKK to CDG?

 

How many cabin staff were there for the 38 passengers?  How many are there for the first class cabin?

How much would TG quote for a 737 for the same flight?

How much luggage was on the outbound and how much on the inbound flight?

etc

etc

 

 

 

 

 

[asiaexpat]

Having many years of experience managing corporate and charter flights I would say this flight was quite extravagant and reminds me of the travel expenses incurred by middle eastern royals. For a government that professes to have Thailand's best interests in mind this seems unusually expensive. Using a 747 to transport a rather small group is beyond ridiculous and wasteful. The in flight service as reported exceeds even middle eastern private flight expectations. There can be no rational explanation for this expensive junket in my opinion.  

[aussieinthailand]

8 minutes ago, colinneil said:

Standard business practice my a..e

Standard practice is to quote before not after.

Just another load of b.....t , something anybody connected with these people are getting very good at.

Time to buy a bigger trough, as the present 1 is getting too small for all the extra snouts.

 

A selection of 4 premium-grade service menus'

3  premium-grade service standard meals plus snacks/drinks  X 38 people = 114 meals.   BKK   -  HLU

3  premium-grade service standard meals plus snacks/drinks  X 43 people =  129 meals.  HLU  -   BKK

A total of 243 premium service standard meals/ 600,000 Baht = 2469 Baht per meal. 

Now that must be some darn good "normal Thai food like noodles"...........! 

 

21 Million Baht that could have gone too health or education etc.

 

Right now that's it you guy's next time you all have to bring your own sticky rice box with you and then you can order the salmon and Champaign,, that'll fix them bloody meddler's n critics...

 

Could this whole cock up have been avoided by using that new fangled thing called the internet or a secure live video feed???

[sharecropper]

1 minute ago, asiaexpat said:

Having many years of experience managing corporate and charter flights I would say this flight was quite extravagant and reminds me of the travel expenses incurred by middle eastern royals. For a government that professes to have Thailand's best interests in mind this seems unusually expensive. Using a 747 to transport a rather small group is beyond ridiculous and wasteful. The in flight service as reported exceeds even middle eastern private flight expectations. There can be no rational explanation for this expensive junket in my opinion.  

 

Oh there is and it begins with the 'C' word so beloved of Thai goverments past and, sadly, present.

[chainarong]

This is one reason why the Junta of 06 couldn't go fast enough back to a caretaker civilian  government , when things like this crop up with a military Junta nobody believes them , and why should they , the military helped in the first instance  to create the image of a country that is one of the worst corrupt countries in the world and there is nothing they can say that will change peoples thoughts or attitude, distrust of the military is not only by outsiders it also applies to their own people..........................

[ttl]

Obviously the first figure from Thai was an ESTIMATE (new word perhaps for Thailand)

A quote is usually set in concrete and not negotiable

 

Does that let the dust settle?

[ddavidovsky]

Hilarious to see the elites trying to pass the buck amongst themselves like a turd on a stick.

[waldroj]

According to Thai Airways International's president Charamporn Jotikasthira, "...THAI chose wide-bodied Boeing 747-400 aircraft because the plane could fly across continents to destinations without the need of refueling mid-way..."

 

Not too many continents on the 6,600 NM great circle route from BKK to HNL !!!

 

As for the 747-400, well yes, its range of over 7,000 NM is certainly enough to reach HNL without refuelling.

 

But, then again, THAI's 777-200ER and 787-8 aircraft also have the range (and both are lighter and have fewer seats).

 

Surely, these weren't ruled out because they don't have first-class seating ???

 

 

[starky]

4 hours ago, jerojero said:

Four meals during a 12 hour direct flight? Plus snacks? oink oink.

Absolutely Bangkok- Sydney is 10 and a half and you only get one meal then a Weiss bar before landing. So maybe not inline with normal airline policy. Flown business as well also only one meal then a snack

 

[anon4637435435]

Pigs and small @#$s.

Big plane... Oooh, parade for what? Who is impressed? Seriously? I dont get the motivation for elaborate scams on the public like this. Little fat pigs never been on a plane before or something.

They arent humans. Monkey pigs with guns. 

These people really are babies. Nobody is impressed apart from maybe there monkey pig mums.

21st century people. Just looks dum!! 

All done before.

Go get a real job pricks. 

 

[Chris Lawrence]

At least the poor buggers would be able to stretch their legs and have a good nap on the way back. They would have been as excited as chooks in the chook pen waiting for hand feeding on the flight over. But that is right a Charter plane for 38 plus 41 return. Probably a dam flusey or 2 for the long journey back. Maybe a bit of that mile high stuff?

[Srikcir]

1 hour ago, waldroj said:

Surely, these weren't ruled out because they don't have first-class seating ?

Wasn't the excuse for the charter flight was that no commercial airlines flies nonstop between Bangkok and Honolulu? I checked some airline websites and found that to be the case.

[Srikcir]

2 hours ago, asiaexpat said:

Having many years of experience managing corporate and charter flights

According to Prawit there were no direct BKK to HNL commercial flights , thus the need to charter a flight to fly direct. There is no mention as to whether the Thai Airways pilot has ever flown such route or that he was accompanied by someone (co-pilot, navigator) who had experience with such a route.

 

My question to you (and any others in the forum) based on your experience is whether there are or have been other charter flights between BBK and HNL? Has such a flightpath been established such that a pilot (and specifically the pilot of the subject flight) will have familiarity with meteorological and aircraft performance aspects along the pathway as well as knowledge of emergency landing facilities? Remember that Thai Airways is a commercial, publically traded business (albeit a State-owned enterprise). Are there international aeronautical regulations that apply to such a direct flight and would they have been followed?

 

My concern is that Prawit's charter using a publically-traded commercial carrier might not have been fully legal (outside of Thailand?) nor safe.

[SOTIRIOS]

...the cesspool that is Thai Airways.....

 

...practically 'above the law'.......maybe .....until now.....

 

...let's see.....

 

 

[JAG]

 

"Now is the time for all good men to come to the aid of the party"