The Office of the Ombudsman has told Airports of Thailand (AoT) to improve its security to prevent thefts from checked luggage.
Ombudsman Wittawat Ratchatanan issued the call on Friday after meeting AoT executives and representatives from airlines — Thai Airways International, Bangkok Airways and Thai Smile Airways — at Suvarnabhumi airport and inspecting the security system in the luggage sorting area.
Gen Wittawat said his office had learned that there had been several cases of thefts from luggage. Passengers who had placed valuables inside their checked bags later found the items had vanished when they arrived at their destination.
Ombudsman Wittawat Ratchatanan meets with executives of Airports of Thailand and airlines at Suvarnabhumi airport on Friday. (Photo by Mongkol Bangprapa)
In addition to valuables being removed from checked luggage during sorting, it was also possible that items such as illicit drugs or explosives could be planted in bags, said Gen Wittawat.
It was thus necessary for AoT to have stricter measures to prevent luggage thefts, he added.
The operator of the country’s six international airports has installed more closed-circuit television systems and bans employees from carrying bags or mobile phones inside the luggage sorting area. Police and soliders are also deployed to patrol the area but thefts still occurred, he said.
He instructed AoT to check the criminal and drug records of staff, increase patrols and install more CCTV units in the luggage sorting and parking areas.
AoT recently increased CCTV installations from 778 to 972 in the luggage sorting area and other zones.
Gen Wittawat has a history of taking air travellers’ problems to heart. Two years ago he led a successful campaign to reduce food and drink prices at Don Mueang airport following complaints by passengers.