TAK - Four Myanmar workers were caught using fake passports to board a Nok Air flight at Mae Sot airport on Thursday, police said.
Pol Col Pongnakhon Nakhonsantiparb, chief of Tak immigration police, said the four workers - two men and two women - were smuggled into Thailand carrying false travel documents. They were trying to board Nok Air flight DD-8117 from Tak province to Bangkok.
They hoped to find work in Bangkok and thought immigration checks would not be stringent because as the Songkran holiday is approaching, he said.
Investigators were checking where their fake passports came from as they are considered to be a threat to national security, he added.
Police in Tak arrest four Myanmar workers who attempted to board a Nok Air flight using fake passports on Thursday, April 10, 2014. (Post Today Photo)
Meanwhile, Nok Air chief executive Patee Sarasin said at the company's shareholders' meeting that the budget airline was at fault for allowing a stranger board flight DD-7105 from Hat Yai to Bangkok on April 6 without having a ticket or boarding pass.
He said the cabin crew failed to spot the plane intruder, identified as Sutthidej Mahapan, 39, walking behind other passengers before sneaking into the plane.
"Nok Air is not passive about this and we've been more rigorous when inspecting passengers before they enter our planes and before the planes take off.
"We understand that safety has an impact on passengers' confidence," Mr Patee said.
Patee: Nok Air's security measures will be tighter.(Photo by Pattanapong Hirunard)