jinks
December 1st, 2008, 01:48
BANGKOK POST :-
The leaders of the People's Alliance for Democracy have agreed to allow 88 grounded aircraft to fly out of Suvarnabhumi Airport.
The planes were stranded when they flew in as the PAD occupied the international airport last Tuesday night. Only a handful of passengers have been allowed to leave since then.
The agreement came after hours of negotiations between protest leaders and Airports of Thailand, the airport's owner and operator.
The first of the 88 aircraft already left Suvarnabhumi shortly after dark on Sunday evening.
Under the agreement, Thai Airways International and foreign airlines can fly to airports in other provinces of the country to help evacuate tourists who have been stranded for nearly a week by the protesters.
There is no sign the PAD demonstrators will leave the airport.
Some countries help their citizens, some do not
Spain is to send planes to repatriate more than 500 Spaniards stranded in Thailand due to the closure of Bangkok's airports.
But stranded British tourists face uncertainty. Their foreign office said it would not charter flights to evacuate those unable to get home.
The Philippines announced on Saturday that it would charter buses to take Filipinos from Bangkok to Chiang Mai, where they would get transportation home.''
And more than 260 stranded Russian tourists left for home on Sunday thanks to a flight by Thai Airways International from U-Tapao air base direct to Moscow's Domodedovo airport, the Russian embassy to Thailand said.
In a statement on Sunday the Spanish Foreign Ministry said Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero coordinated the operation with the foreign and defence ministries.
Two air force aircraft and one plane belonging to airline Iberworld are to fly to Thailand "as soon as possible," the statement said. It did not specify where they will land.
State broadcaster TVE cites Spain's ambassador in Thailand, Juan Manuel Lopez Nadal, as saying the evacuation could begin on Monday.
The leaders of the People's Alliance for Democracy have agreed to allow 88 grounded aircraft to fly out of Suvarnabhumi Airport.
The planes were stranded when they flew in as the PAD occupied the international airport last Tuesday night. Only a handful of passengers have been allowed to leave since then.
The agreement came after hours of negotiations between protest leaders and Airports of Thailand, the airport's owner and operator.
The first of the 88 aircraft already left Suvarnabhumi shortly after dark on Sunday evening.
Under the agreement, Thai Airways International and foreign airlines can fly to airports in other provinces of the country to help evacuate tourists who have been stranded for nearly a week by the protesters.
There is no sign the PAD demonstrators will leave the airport.
Some countries help their citizens, some do not
Spain is to send planes to repatriate more than 500 Spaniards stranded in Thailand due to the closure of Bangkok's airports.
But stranded British tourists face uncertainty. Their foreign office said it would not charter flights to evacuate those unable to get home.
The Philippines announced on Saturday that it would charter buses to take Filipinos from Bangkok to Chiang Mai, where they would get transportation home.''
And more than 260 stranded Russian tourists left for home on Sunday thanks to a flight by Thai Airways International from U-Tapao air base direct to Moscow's Domodedovo airport, the Russian embassy to Thailand said.
In a statement on Sunday the Spanish Foreign Ministry said Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero coordinated the operation with the foreign and defence ministries.
Two air force aircraft and one plane belonging to airline Iberworld are to fly to Thailand "as soon as possible," the statement said. It did not specify where they will land.
State broadcaster TVE cites Spain's ambassador in Thailand, Juan Manuel Lopez Nadal, as saying the evacuation could begin on Monday.