All stranded Chinese tourists expected to return home from Thailand by Dec. 1
Chinese emergency chartered flights are expected to fly back home almost all the more than 3,000 mainland tourists stuck in riot-hit Thailand by Dec. 1.
Four Chinese mainland carriers have sent nine planes to retrieve the tourists after Bangkok's international airport closed because of a protest.
Some 2,000 tourists had returned back home by noon, and another more than 800 would fly back late Sunday night or early Monday morning, according to the airlines.
China Southern Airlines, the nation's largest carrier by fleet size, said late Sunday night it will sent another plane to take back the remaining tourists on Monday.
Around 246 passengers landed in Shanghai at 2:00 a.m. on Sunday. This was the first return flight from Thailand, though delayed for several hours because of unstable situation at the airport.
鑒于曼谷國(guó)際機(jī)場(chǎng)仍處于關(guān)閉狀態(tài),中國(guó)政府有關(guān)機(jī)構(gòu)已啟動(dòng)應(yīng)急機(jī)制,盡快接回中國(guó)公民。中國(guó)政府派出多架大型客機(jī)飛赴泰國(guó),從位于距曼谷180多公里的泰國(guó)烏塔堡軍用機(jī)場(chǎng),接回滯留在泰國(guó)的中國(guó)公民,約2000名中國(guó)內(nèi)地游客將乘飛機(jī)陸續(xù)返回國(guó)內(nèi)。
30日晚間從中國(guó)南方航空公司獲悉,南航12月1日將再增加一班包機(jī)飛往泰國(guó)烏塔堡機(jī)場(chǎng),接回滯留泰國(guó)的最后一批中國(guó)旅客。
南航表示,12月1日將使用波音777飛機(jī),目前正向中國(guó)民航局申請(qǐng)加班計(jì)劃。
據(jù)南航駐泰國(guó)辦事處負(fù)責(zé)人介紹,南航11月30日的CZ004航班已組織旅客登機(jī)完畢,目前共乘坐379名旅客,正在等候起飛命令。南航已做好全面準(zhǔn)備,備足飛機(jī)運(yùn)力,只要機(jī)場(chǎng)條件允許,機(jī)組隨時(shí)起飛,運(yùn)回滯留同胞。
由于烏塔堡機(jī)場(chǎng)空域能力十分有限,導(dǎo)致有50多架飛機(jī)在空中和地面長(zhǎng)久等待。南航的CZ003航班也在烏塔堡機(jī)場(chǎng)長(zhǎng)時(shí)間盤(pán)旋,等待降落指令。