The Transport Ministry is drafting new rules that will require charter airlines to place financial guarantees and take proper care of passengers in the event that they cannot operate flights.
Transport Minister Chadchart Sithipan said new ministerial regulations would require all charter airlines to submit bank guarantees to the Civil Aviation Department at least three days prior to operating a non-scheduled or charter flight. The money would be a surety to cover any damage suffered by passengers and/or tour operators in the event of a flight cancellation.
The move follows the recent stranding of passengers by PC Air. South Korean authorities stopped the Thai airline's sole 200-seater plane from taking off from Seoul's Incheon airport in October.
Hundreds of passengers were left stranded at the airport due to a conflict between the airline and its South Korean agent, Skyjet, over unpaid bills for airport charges and jet fuel totalling more than 10 million baht.
Mr Chadchart said the required amount of money for a guarantee must not be less than the charter price set out in an operator-participant contract, or the maximum fare paid by the passengers.
The money must be at least tripled for a charter period of more than 30 days, and doubled if the period is longer than 15 days but less than 30 days.
Food, drinks, accommodation and refunds must be provided for passengers, similar to those provided by operators of scheduled flights, in the event of a delay or flight cancellation.
Authorities will confiscate the surety money from any operator found to have violated the new charter rules, said Civil Aviation Department director-general Voradej Harnprasert.
Mr Voradej said the draft legislation would be submitted to the relevant agencies including the Office of the Consumer Protection Board, Tourism Authority of Thailand and Airline Operators Committee for consideration next month. If there are no objections, the rules could take effect in February.
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About the author
Writer: Amornrat MahitthirookPosition: Reporter
Article source: http://www.thethailandlinks.com/2012/12/16/charter-airlines-must-boost-protection/
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