AOT to review emergency plans

BANGKOK, December 21 (TNA) - Thai Transport Minister Chadchart Sittipunt says that he has ordered Airports of Thailand Public Company Limited (AOT) to review its emergency plans, after an incident in which an Air Berlin plane made an emergency landing at the Phuket International Airport in the Thai South Thursday night and parked in the middle of the runway for more than 6 hours, disrupting other flights. Chadchart raised Thursday night's incident at the Phuket International Airport at a workshop, entitled Aviation Strategies:Suvarnabhumi Airport Phase 2, in Bangkok on Friday morning, acknowledging that he has already sent the instruction to the AOT. According to the transport minister, the number of passengers at the Phuket International Airport has kept rising and it is exceeding its maximum capacity and causing congestion; so, he is scheduled to visit the airport next week to inspect the situation. Meanwhile, Acting AOT President Somchai Sawasdeepon told reporters that AOT is speeding up revising its emergency plans, as instructed. The move followed Thursday night's crux at the Phuket International Airport, in which an Airbus plane of the Air Berlin detected smoke in its cabin and made a emergency landing, blocking the airport runway for over six hours and disrupting 14 flights with more than 1,000 passengers left stranded. The AOT acting president noted that the stranded passengers were all provided accommodations and meals and have already departed for their destinations via new flights arranged by the airport authorities. (TNA)