Hong Kong Authorities threaten to seize Boeing 747 of Orient Thai

A jumbo jet belonging to a beleaguered Thai airline faces seizure by the Airport Authority, just weeks after aviation officials impounded an ex-Russian jetliner.
For months, Orient Thai Airlines has failed to pay aeronautical and maintenance fees on the stricken jet, leaving the Hong Kong Aircraft Engineering Company (Haeco) andthe airport operatorcircling for its dues.
It joined the estimated 10,000 passengers affected by cancellations from Hong Kong – many of whom were left out of pocket as refunds failed to materialise after flights with the carrier were halted in March.
A string of aviation incidents revealed a chequered past with planes left stranded, money owed to both companies and passengers, and a number of safety incidents.
Orient Thai’s Boeing 747 aircraft has been parked near the maintenance hangars since March. Engineers from Haeco have removed and attempted to replace one of the engines, but work stopped over a lack of payment – thought to be a six-figure sum – and the 24-year-old jumbo jet was left engineless and out of service.
The maintenance firm’s spokeswoman Sharon Lun said: “Since we did not receive any further engineering instructions from the airline and the required payment has not been settled, we stopped the services.”
The debt to the Airport Authority could amount to HK$1 million, or HK$7,680 a day since the plane was left stranded, according to one calculation.
An Airport Authority source said legal action was “something we are considering”.
In a statement, a spokesman for the operator of Hong Kong International Airport said: “[We] will further communicate with the Civil Aviation Department, as well as the handling agent and maintenance service provider … for further information and instruction on the aircraft status.”
Another Orient Thai 747 has been waylaid in Taipei for the last several months and its fate remains unclear.
In mainland China, Orient Thai’s flights have been heavily penalised by the Civil Aviation Administration of China for a range of violations.
The charter company was punished for landing an aircraft with one wheel missing, leading to a fine of 29,000 yuan (HK$33,600) and restrictions on the number of flights it could operate. Later it was sanctioned after the Thai carrier operated three passenger flights without local government permission. The regulator asked Orient Thai to improve its safety awareness after the “serious” missing wheel incident.
Two weeks ago, airport bosses used a little known clause in the Airport Authority Ordinance to start legal proceedings to sell a Boeing 767 aircraft, owned by Russian airline Transaero, which went bust last year. The clause empowered the authority to sell a detained plane whose owner had defaulted on charges. Transaero was thought to owe HK$2 million in unpaid fees and charges.
South China Morning Post