Employees of Mjets Ltd were dumbfounded when a Hollywood celebrity told them to look for some nice fried crickets for her young son to snack on for a private jet flight out of Bangkok.
‘Somtam’ really does taste better at 30,000 feet.
After verifying the order, they scurried out from their station at Don Mueang airport in search of the edible insects, a northeastern delicacy sold on some Bangkok roadsides. The woman's son was not from the Northeast.
In another instance, a former international beauty queen had the pangs for a spicy Sichuan-style broth that she wished to enjoy after her executive jet's take-off from Bangkok's old airport.
Satisfying her appetite would have been easy had she not notified the Mjets staff only 15 minutes before departure.
Meanwhile, an Indonesian tycoon wanted grilled tapioca soaked in syrup, a dessert that has almost disappeared from Bangkok.
The cricket-snacking son of a Hollywood star, the beauty queen and the Indonesian billionaire _ whose names were not disclosed for privacy reasons _ all got what they wanted with help from street vendors and a good Chinese restaurant near the airport.
These are examples of the cases, some bizarre, some ordinary, of providing ground services for the rich and famous who travel in private planes.
Catering to those for whom money is no object and who normally do not take no for an answer is a huge challenge, said Parichat Paliyawan, the director for flight services at Mjets, the operator of Thailand's first and only private jet terminal.
"You must strive to meet all the requests from this clientele," said the in-flight service veteran who once worked for a US carrier and is still looking after billionaires, VIPs and upper-class types who hop around the world on private jets spending lots of money.
"Generally, they are happy to pay as long as they get what they want," she said, adding that they may not necessarily demand expensive stuff every time but may simply ask for humble fare such as cup noodles.
The services rendered by private jet handlers such as Mjets far exceed those of typical premium airlines in the sense that they are personalised, living up to all expectations, said Mjets executives.
One executive likened the firm's job to that of a hotel butler, who not only looks after the well-being of his guests but also deals with the special needs and problems they face while in the country.
In one case, foreign guests left their passports at an inner-city hotel and asked Mjets staff to rush the documents to the terminal in time for the planned departure.
Another common request comes from executive jet travellers of Chinese origin who ask Mjets to take them to pay respects to San Phra Phrom (the Brahma Shrine, also known as the Erawan shrine) during a stopover at Don Mueang airport.
There was a Taiwanese real estate tycoon who regularly flew into the Mjets terminal and headed directly to the White Dragon Chinese shrine in Chon Buri's Si Racha district thanks to arrangements made by Mjets.
An Indian billionaire's wife who had winged in on a private jet with family members and maids strictly for a shopping trip asked Mjets to arrange an Indian meal from two Bangkok restaurants for nine passengers on their flight out one evening.
The food came in two trucks, enough to feed dozens of people, with a receipt of 200,000 baht, an executive recalled.
Seasonal Thai fruits are also popular with international private jet travellers.
Mango, mangosteen and longan are favourites among Middle Easterners, with Mjets helping to squeeze 40 boxes of those fruits onto a plane bound for the UAE.
Fresh Thai coconuts are normally found on India-bound flights, carrying up to 70 at a time.
Thai dishes such as green curry chicken, somtam (spicy papaya salad) and khaoniew mamuang (sticky rice and ripe mango with coconut milk) are the most popular meals for foreign guests on flights out of Bangkok.