One-2-Go plane crash at Phuket

[Sen Yai]

A passenger jet of One-To-Go Airlines with 128 people aboard crashed while landing at Phuket Airport in southern Thailand late Sunday afternoon and rescue workers said the death toll could be high.

Bangkok Post (http://www.bangkokpost.com/topstories/topstories.php?id=121720)

the Nation report maybe 80 or more dead. Hope nobody here is affected.

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2007/09 ... 049141.php (http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2007/09/16/headlines/headlines_30049141.php)

Plane breaks in two after crash at Phuket Airport
An airliner exploded and broke in two after it slid off the runway and crashed into nearby walls at Phuket airport on Sunday afternoon.

Some reports put the death toll at about 60, but this has yet to be confirmed. The nationalities of those onboard is also unknown, but Phuket is a highly popular destination for overseas tourists.

The airliner services Bangkok-Phuket flights six times a week. The ill-fated airline left Don Muang airport at about 2.30pm.

Information now coming in said the plane, which was being used by local budget travel company, One-to-Go Airline, had 123 passengers and five crew.

The aircraft, flight number OG 269, landed at Phuket airport at about 3.40pm from Bangkok and was taxiing along the runway when it went into a slide. Phuket had earlier been hit by heavy rains.

It crashed into trees and walls surrounding the airport.

Eye-witnesses said the impact of the crash caused the plane to break in two and they heard a series of explosions.

Rescue teams and navy personnel rushed to the scene.


The Nation, 16.09.2007
www.nationmultimedia.com/2007/09/16/hea ... 049141.php (http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2007/09/16/headlines/headlines_30049141.php)

Plane crashes in Thailand resort

Many people are feared dead after a plane crashed on landing in bad weather at the Thai resort of Phuket, aviation officials say.
The plane, carrying 123 passengers, a number of them foreigners, crashed after hitting the runway heavily in strong winds and heavy rain.

The number of casualties is not clear but there are reports of survivors.

Flight OG 269, operated by budget airline One-Two-Go, was landing after a journey from the capital, Bangkok.

Rescue operations are under way at the airport and doctors are being flown to Phuket to treat the injured.

Rescuers said the plane caught fire after crashing.

Civil aviation official Chiasak Angkauwan said: "The airplane asked to land but due to the weather in Phuket - strong wind and heavy rain - maybe the pilot did not see the runway clearly.

"The plane then fell onto the runway and broke into two."

One-Two-Go is owned by Orient Thai Airways.

[Aunty]

This is what CNN International have just posted on their website.

BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) -- A One-Two-Go Airlines jet crashed and was engulfed in flames as it attempted to land in heavy rain at the Phuket airport in southern Thailand on Sunday, authorities said.

Maj. Gen. Deecha Butnamphet, police chief in Phuket, said on local television station TITV that "we believe that there are many people who are dead. We are taking the dead and injured out from the scene.

"The airplane is completely destroyed and inflamed," he said.

It wasn't immediately known how many people were on board, though TITV said without citing sources that 123 mostly foreign tourists were the passengers, which was traveling from Bangkok to Phuket, a popular resort area for tourists.

TITV reported 60 dead, but Chaisak Angsuwan, director general of the Air Transport Authority of Thailand, could not confirm that.

Angsuwan told The Associated Press by telephone he believes "there are people dead, but the number is still unclear."

Earlier, Angsuwan had told TITV that there was heavy rain when One-Two-Go airlines flight OG269 from Bangkok to Phuket attempted to make a landing. One-To-Go, a budget airline, is owned Orient Thai Airways.

"The visibility was poor as the pilot attempted to land. He decided to make a go-around but the plane lost balance and crashed. It was torn into two parts," he said.

Death toll estimates nearing 100 now.

I'm reminded of that FIERCE lightening clash in Bkk this early afternoon. Yikes!


Jet in Thailand Crashes, 100 Feared Dead

16 minutes ago

BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) — A passenger plane heading to one of Thailand's leading tourist destinations crashed Sunday as it tried to land in heavy rain and was engulfed in flames. A regional official said as many as 100 people were feared dead.

Worapot Ratthaseema, deputy governor of Thailand's Phuket island, said that as many as 100 were dead, based on assessments that as few as 20 passengers made it of the wreck alive.

"I believe 90 percent or about 100 passengers are fear dead," Worapot said, adding that Phuket airport in southern Thailand had been temporarily closed following the crash of the One-Two-GO jet.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.

BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) — A One-To-Go Airlines jet crashed and was engulfed in flames as it attempted to land in heavy rain at the Phuket airport in southern Thailand on Sunday, authorities said.

Maj. Gen. Deecha Butnamphet, police chief in Phuket, said on local television station TITV that "we believe that there are many people who are dead. We are taking the dead and injured out from the scene.

"The airplane is completely destroyed and inflamed," he said.

It wasn't immediately known how many people were on board, though TITV said without citing sources that 123 mostly foreign tourists were the passengers, which was traveling from Bangkok to Phuket, a popular resort area for tourists.

TITV reported 60 dead, but Chaisak Angsuwan, director general of the Air Transport Authority of Thailand, could not confirm that.

Angsuwan told The Associated Press by telephone he believes "there are people dead, but the number is still unclear."

Earlier, Angsuwan had told TITV that there was heavy rain when One-To-Go airlines flight OG269 from Bangkok to Phuket attempted to make a landing. One-To-Go, a budget airline, is owned Orient Thai Airways.

"The visibility was poor as the pilot attempted to land. He decided to make a go-around but the plane lost balance and crashed. It was torn into two parts," he said.

According to Oriental Thai the MD-80 carried 56 foreign and 67 Thai passengers. Most of foreigners where Europeans.

About 60 to 80 people have died.

They have found 29 injured people, 7 from Thailand, 8 from UK , 2 Australians, 1 from Ireland, 1 from Iran.

There are 10 more injured people who are believed from Germany, Israel, Italy but there nationality is not confirmed yet.

Several people are still missing.

[Smiles]

Easier to see:


http://my.photodump.com/sawatdee/jetcrash.jpg

Alomst half of them farangs according to Nations last update.

74 dead and 14 missing.

Phuket International Airport ground team did a good job by rescuing at least 42 passengers ....

http://www.sawatdee-gay-thailand.com/forum/weblogs/upload/44/11951137946ed51353a999.jpg

[Sen Yai]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v291/SenYai/OG269.jpg

[quote="Bangkok Post":3jq2q57u]A passenger jet of One-To-Go Airlines with 128 people aboard crashed while landing at Phuket Airport in southern Thailand late Sunday afternoon and rescue workers said the death toll could be high.

[/quote:3jq2q57u]

Passenger Manifest. http://www.bangkokpost.com/breaking_new ... ?id=121729 (http://www.bangkokpost.com/breaking_news/breakingnews.php?id=121729)

Ill-fated One-Two-Go aircraft not covered by local insurance

The One-Two-Go McDonnell Douglas MD 82 that crashed in Phuket on Sunday was not covered by local insurance, said Chantra Purnariksha, the head of the Office of the Insurance Commission.

Chantra said it is not yet known whether the aircraft, which was leased by OneTwoGo from a foreign company, is covered by foreign insurance or not, something that the insurance commission still needs to find out.

However, airline companies normally buy insurance to cover both the aircraft in operation and passengers.

Chantra said foreign passengers usually have their own life and accident insurance, but Thai passengers, who are now being treated at local hospitals, will be able to get compensation from OneTwoGo, which will have to pay hospital bills immediately. The airline can claim those costs from its foreign insurers later.

Chantra said that the General Insurance Association had confirmed that OneTwoGo did not have local insurance for the MD 82 that crashed. He added that he will try to find out whether the foreign owner of the MD 82, which had leased it to OneTwoGo, had insurance for the aircraft.

Relatives of the deceased from the accident seeking to claim damages from the provincial insurance office can call 1122 for further information. Payment and compensation will only be delivered after DNA verification checks have been conducted.

The Nation, Sept. 17, 2007

I think this manifest is a (very unwelcome, indeed, VERY sad) 'snapshot' into Thailand's tourist industry right now showing that Europeans are coming and Americans are not. Americans therefore appear to be the group most responsible for this year's low tourism numbers. Unfortunately there is nothing Thailand could do about that, be it fear, or whatever, except to wait and hope for change after next years election, I think.

My DEEPEST sympathies to all that lost family and friends in this tragedy. I have flown into Phuket several times but always thought Chiang Mai (always bad in the rain and fog) was a trickier place to land and take off than Phuket is. I guess the rains made the difference.

My DEEPEST sympathies to all that lost family and friends in this tragedy. I have flown into Phuket several times but always thought Chiang Mai (always bad in the rain and fog) was a trickier place to land and take off than Phuket is. I guess the rains made the difference.

Echo the sentiments of sympathy.

The approach to Phuket is over the sea and the runway starts only about 2 hundred metres from the water's edge. Wind conditions can be very volatile as they hit land. As anyone who has been caught out on Dongtan beach as a storm approaches and hits land can testify, the gusting winds involved are very severe.

The reports say that the pilot had already attempted one landing but had been forced to 'go around' because of the difficult landing conditions. It seems from the reports that the major factor in the crash was the gusting winds and wind-shear factor (which causes sudden and strong downdraughts of air).

Budget airline One-Two-Go's aircraft, which crash-landed in Phuket on Sunday, was insured for US$305 million which covered damage to the aircraft and passengers, according to Insurance Commission Office Secretary-General Chantra Purnariksha.

From an investigation, she said, One-Two-Go bought an insurance policy from an underwriter in Britain with coverage amount of $300 million. This amount would cover losses of life, medical bills, and shipment of dead bodies. One-Two-Go also insured its aircraft for $5 million and the policy would cover both the aircraft and passengers.

Chantra also urged relatives of the victims to check if the dead and injured passengers have bought any insurance policies, so that the office could rush to claim for bills on behalf of the passengers.

The relatives are invited to contact the Office's Phuket branch at Tel 076-219-496, 081-174-8960 or 1186.

"We're closely monitoring the accident. One-Two-Go is insured by a foreign insurer who could not deny the responsibility," she noted.

The Nation, Sept. 17, 2007

[thrillbill]

If I recall correctly, didn't the pilot want to abort the second landing but the control towers told him to land? And according to the BKK post, didn't the captain say to the passengers before they landed that he could not see the runway (which I thought would be frightening to hear as a passenger). Those who can locate the article in BKK post on line can verify if this is what was printed. I have been on fights where the airplane "circles" to avoid the storm or flies back to the departing airport in order to avoid a storm, but I am sure this is unusual.

If I recall correctly, didn't the pilot want to abort the second landing but the control towers told him to land? .

Control towers give aircraft the "clearance to land", but they do not prevent or control go arounds. The Pilot in Command of the aircraft has the final decision on all actons of the aircraft, and can always choose to go around or divert to a different airport.

[thrillbill]

thanks for the info

[jinks]

Link from Doug ... tings n tongs board.

Passengers video.... after the commercial ad

http://www.iltasanomat.fi/videot/?id=1437166&ap=1

Wow, that video was incredible. You could just see the survivors wallking away from the plane. Thanks.

PHUKET AIRPORT: Survivors and the families of those who died in the crash landing of One-Two-Go flight OG269 on Sunday will each receive an insurance payout of US$150,000 (about 5 million baht), Udom Thantprasongchai, managing director of Orient Thai, which operates One-Two-Go, said today.

Speaking to the press at Phuket Airport Office, K. Udom explained that One-Two-Go had already offered up to 50,000 baht for each survivor’s clothing and other immediate basic needs.

“We are insured up to US$300 million… We are currently working on the documents and fine-checking the contracts,” said K. Udom.

Families of Thais who died in the crash will also receive 100,000 baht per victim to cover funeral costs.

K. Udom explained that One-Two-Go has decreased its daily schedule by 10 domestic flights a day, down to 30. “We want our staff to feel relaxed and not to worry too much about what happened. I think after two or three weeks, our services will be as normal again,” he said.

“We have also enlisted the help of an expert company for transporting the bodies of victims’ back to their home countries,” he added.

Royal Thai Police Thailand Disaster Victim Identification staff at Phuket International Airport told the Gazette today that the bodies Israeli women Rachel Tofen, Lily Alon and Eliya Hofit as well as American Stefan Mark Woronoff and Frenchman Alain Benbaron were flown to Bangkok today, before they will be flown back to their home countries.

Since Sunday, the bodies of 12 foreigners have been repatriated.

Source: Phuket Gazette, 20.09.2007