The number of serious incidents in Thailand involving aircraft has jumped sharply post-Covid as the lifting of restrictions reignited demand for air travel.
There were 11 "serious incidents" here last year involving aircraft registered in Thailand and in other countries, a rapid rise from only two in 2021 and six in 2022, according to the Thailand Annual Safety Report 2023 released on the weekend.
The yearly report is prepared by the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand.
Although the number of "serious incidents" rose, the number of aircraft "accidents" last year dropped to two from four in 2022, in line with the downward trend since 2018.
"Although the accident rate remains fairly steady, there has been a significant increase in serious incidents since 2021 and the end of the coronavirus pandemic," the report said.
Most of the serious incidents in 2023 involved commercial aircraft, and the rest privately owned planes.
The aviation regulator did not offer a definition of a "serious incident". Air Safety Support International defines them on its website as "an incident involving circumstances indicating that there was a high probability of an accident and is associated with the operation of an aircraft".
Air Safety Support International is a non-profit organisation under the UK Civil Aviation Authority.
Serious incidents included an aircraft making an emergency landing at Hat Yai airport on June 24 last year due to smoke in the cockpit, and a plane touching down before reaching the runway at Samui airport on Aug 29.
Birdstrike was the most reported occurrence, almost 43% of the total last year, the report said without offering more information. It said only that there were 1,610 cases related to bird issues, which covers bird encounters and birdstrikes. Issues involving other wildlife were second, a long way behind, with 410 incidents.
