Phuket Air

I'm with Helen Brade. Was also on the 15th January flight with the 18 hrs delay. If I had known the real reason for the delay engine fire on outbound flight flight I wouldn't have flown with them at all. The planes are old noisy the reading lights don't work the TV screens are fuzzy and they should stay on the ground for good before a real disaster occurs. The crew are lovely but I didn't feel at all confident that they would be able to handle an emergency situation or one such as the drunk passenger described in Helen's posting. I was on the plane for a total of 17 hrs on the return flight on 12th Feb and this was a day early than scheduled as Phuket said 13th Feb flight cancelled when I called to reconfirm flight no explanation so I lost a day at the start of my holiday and a day at the end I won't be flying with them again. I flew to Bangkok from Laos a few days before my return flight and there were 5 Phuket Jumbos on the tarmac at Bangkok 3 with the engine covers open maybe routine but with all the information on this forum it does make you wonder. I hope that they can sort out their problems but short of a new fleet I can't see it happening!

Bangkok to London for myself and two children - 5/02/05 flight delayed 2 hours from Bangkok- no explanation given On boarding found no one at the entrance to plane so just wandered on and found our seats. Two of the three were broken and could not recline. A passenger behind us could not find her seat as shown on boarding pass. Eventually cabin crew discovered that the seat on aircraft did not exist and had to cross out a seat number using felt tip pen and write correct number up above. Overall impression of interior was very unpleasant and dim - hardly any light at all due to the very old aircraft used and no updating of interior. After taking off no hello from captain or any communication - it would have been courteous to know what the delay was . We never heard his voice throughout the flight. After arriving in Dubai the hour hour turned into 2hours 15 minutes- no cabin crew would tell me what the delay was for although I did see a Phuket Airlines engineer inspecting engines. Took off for final leg - at least this change of captain did mean that we heard his voice and he at least apologised for the 2 hour plus delay. I should mention that during the stop-over the engines were off and no aircon inside cabin which left most passengers very uncomfortable. Food was of low quality and beer i asked for was warm and not refrigerated. Crew were ok especially after seeing what they have to put up with. On arrival at Gatwick had to wait exactly 60 minutes for bags and with the extra delay of flight meant we missed our coach we had previously booked. Total flight time 18 hours (21 including arrival time at Bangkok - as we were told to arrive 3 hours before boarding?) After travelling for 20 years I can honestly say that this has been my worst experience ever and has put me off flying especially with children. I have to return to Thailand and would not fly Phuket Airlines if I was given free tickets - the whole experience from check in to arrival was most unpleasant.

LGW-BKK return. Both flights on schedule no delays. Very happy with the service. The 747's on this fleet are very old but for 300 quid I didn't expect a champagne reception! The only annoyance was that I wasn't awoken when the visa forms came round. Caused me a slight delay getting through passport control! Going from most of the readers here I struck lucky! I will flying again with them soon will post results of that journey on my return.

I was also booked for this flight. When we arrived at Bangkok airport for the return trip we were met with the same problems. Our group of four spoke to a supervisor and we were very lucky to get on the Qantas flight an hour later. I second everything the previous writer has said. Phuket Airlines are a shambles. Never again.

Pleased with our experience on Phuket Air - flight out was a little dissapointing as they were old seats with little recline. But we were the only two in Business Class so were treated like royalty - the best staff I have encountered. Return was different - much improved seating with cradle style resulting in a good nights sleep - but the food wasn't quite as good. I would fly Phuket Air Business Class again - such a good deal.

I traveled with Phuket Airlines on 15th January 2005 our flight was supposed to leave Gatwick at 2pm that day. We arrived at the check in desk at 11am to be greeted with a rumor that the flight was 11 hours delayed! Eventually the check in desk opened and passengers were informed that there was an 18 hour delay on the flight no real explanation was given but after looking at this web page I now know why. Apparently the flight which left Bangkok on 14th January had to make an emergency landing due to an engine fire. I can honestly say that after my experience with Phuket Airlines this does not surprise me in the least. I have never come across such an inefficient incompetent and unprofessional organization. The flight eventually left London Gatwick at 8.30am the following morning. The service left a lot to be desired passengers were fed a poor quality meal just after take off were not given another hot meal until 8 hours later. The aircraft used was severely weathered and that is putting it mildly (ex KLM fleet). On our return flight several televisions were broken and the audio equipment on many seats did not work. Our return journey turned into a complete nightmare in anticipation of a further delay we contacted Phuket Air in Bangkok on 28th January informing them that we were due to fly out on 29th only to be informed that the flight would be delayed 12 hours and would not be leaving until 30th January but we still had to be at the check in for 9pm on 29th. We were also informed that we would be put on a standby list with Thai Airways for a flight out that night and the earlier we arrived the more chance we had of getting on that flight. The main problem with Phuket Air is that they do not have the fleet or the organizational capacity to operate on an international basis. Check-in eventually opened at 9.30pm and we were informed that there was no standby list and no prospect of getting on another flight! We had to return the next morning at 7.30am to check in. Again further annoyance as passengers began to queue up at 7am only to be told that check in would not open until 8.30am. The flight was scheduled to leave at 10.30am and eventually took of at 12.30pm due to further ‘technical difficulties’! The flight home was horrendous the airline does not seem to have any regard for passenger safety as they allowed a seriously drunken passenger to board the flight in Bangkok. He was that drunk he could barely stand up. He then proceeded to seriously harass the passengers on board walking around the plane for several hours causing grave concern. The cabin crew had no control whatsoever over the situation. After four hours we were shocked to be informed that despite numerous requests from passengers the Captain had not been informed about this disruptive passenger. The flight made a scheduled stop in Sharjah to re-fuel this in itself defies all logic as it manages to make the outward journey with out stopping and only serves to turn an 11 hour flight into 15 hours. We were subsequently informed that the only reason why they do this is because it’s cheaper to re-fuel. Eventually after half an hour of being on the ground the drunken lout was removed from the plane and his baggage off loaded. After a 14 hour delay and a 15 hour long flight you do not need the stress! With the price of tickets being so cheap regrettably Phuket Air has opened up the market for the typical English larger lout. If you have already booked tickets with Phuket Air I pity your misfortune if not escape now and use a reputable airline that will not destroy your holiday and most of all not compromise your safety!

My friend and I were on the 14th January flight from Bangkok to Gatwick when the engine caught fire and we had to land back at Bangkok. What a total nightmare! I would urge anyone thinking of using Phuket Airlines to go with a reputable carrier and to avoid flying with them. Phuket Airlines in my opinion are a total shambles. Once we had landed back at Bangkok Airport there was no organisation no explanations just total chaos. None of the staff had a clue what was going on and how to handle the situation. We heard stories from other passengers about problems they had experienced on the way out as well mechanical problems very long delays etc. They are just not equiped to deal with big international flights. The reason they are so cheap is because they are so crap! The planes are very old and have definitely seen better days. Don't risk it pay the extra to fly with a decent airline is my advice you will feel safer and more confident and you will get much better service. We spent out £400 on a new return ticket as we were not prepared to fly back with them to London the following day. 13 hours is a long time to sit and worry whether their old plane will make it or not. I know alot of other people on our original flight bought new tickets as well some were on our Thai Airways flight back to Heathrow. My friend has since contacted Phuket Airlines here in the UK to take the matter further but surprisingly they aren't being very helpful - Phuket Airlines - bunch of cowboys in my opinion.

17/12/04-07/01/05 LGW-BKK. Our 3rd flight with Phuket Airlines and never again - the planes are a disgrace faulty seats lights etc - the food is awful the toilets backed up (I'll leave that to your imagination). The first and second flights with them weren't too bad because the planes were only a third full - so plenty of room and slept all the way. Got decent service when awake but the third flight with being peak season was fully booked and a nightmare - it is practically impossible to get a drink even though the staff are really friendly as they are so busy. The fuel stop is a nightmare and the flights shouldn't really be sold as direct because they're not. Check in at Gatwick is okay but at Bangkok allow 2 hours at peak season - very disorganised which leaves no time to go to duty free. A friend of ours was on Bangkok to Gatwick 14/01/05 and 5 minutes out of Bangkok they had to return and do an emergency landing - the engine was on fire. Apparently this also happened 3 weeks before christmas. I'd rather pay more and feel safe and be able to get good service.

BKK-LGW Business Class - just got back this morning from this flight. The 747-300 really is showing its age however they have done a great job refurbishing the upper deck. The seat pitch at 58-60 inches is the most generous I have experienced in business class and with only 7 rows it feels very spacious. There are no seat motors so it's all manually operated but the seats are extremely comfortable and the recline is excellent. Unfortunately the same cannot be said of the standard of catering. I have travelled on eleven different airlines' long haul business class and the dinner served on this flight was the worst I have ever experienced in business class - by a very long way. In fact I have had much better meals in other airlines' economy class. Also only one white and one red wine was offered both very mediocre and no after dinner drinks. The breakfast served on the second leg was of a much higher standard though. There was a choice of 6 movies but no menu so that I had to ask one of the crew to write them down! The stop in Sharjah to refuel was a real pain as it made the whole flight last 15 hours. So great seats and polite service but very poor food and wine. On the way out there was a 17 hour delay due to technical problems. They knew about this the day before but didn't bother to phone any passengers to let them know! We got transferred to the Thai Airlines flight from Heathrow which had great food and service but the worst seats. I have experienced in business class!

They are cheap and they are cheap for a reason! - 2 stories of incompetence - First my brother took the LGW to BKK economy return in May 2004. Outbound no problem. Return flight they dumped all the passengers in the middle of the desert (Dubai) and abandoned the flight due to supposed technical failure but later we discovered they had missed their landing slot at Gatwick. Absolute chaos at Dubai airport and the one lady Phuket airline staff deserted her post and left 300+ passengers stranded. All the Phuket Airlines officials did a runner! No explanations given! After 5 hours of irate passengers spitting nails – an Emirates official grasped the nettle and re- scheduled everybody back to Heathrow or Gatwick on Emirates flights. My brother was delayed around 8 hours. Story no. 2 - thinking maybe my brother had a “one off experience” I flew out same route economy class £456 LGW to BKK in August. Outbound no problem decent flight with average service. Return flight I re-confirmed my flight 72 hours prior with booking reference. Reached BKK airport 3 hours before departure and 3 queues were about 50 metres long already! - and hardly moving. It took an amazing 3 and half hours to eventually reach the desk as the staff were spending 80% of their time on walkie talkies. By the time I reached the desk I was told by the check in girl that the flight was overbooked and I couldn’t fly that day! – Charming! It’s now 2.30 am I am dog tired and no Phuket flights for 3 days! – They transferred about 8 of us to a nice hotel and put us on standby for BA/Quantas. Yes “standby” at peak holiday season! – no guarantee of getting home for 3 days ... lucky B.A. had a seat the next night back to Heathrow (not LGW) making my home train ticket invalid to Sheffield. I complained by email to Phuket Airlines (their website is useless). It appears that standby passengers were let onto our flight whilst valid ticket holders like myself were denied access. No reply by email but did eventually receive a letter reply 3 months later. A long convoluted generalised statement about overbooking problems and didn’t address the real issues. If you want to save money and take a risk go ahead and book - but for me Phuket Airlines nay more!