Travellers back from Bangkok cheer return
Travellers stranded by the political chaos in Thailand broke into applause when a flight carrying them to Hong Kong touched down last night.
'All the passengers breathed a sigh of relief when we saw the lights of Hong Kong airport from the cabin windows,' said a woman on the special Cathay Pacific flight. 'When the plane landed, there were cheers and applause. It was so moving.'
The flight - from a military airfield - was the first of several laid on to pick up Hongkongers stranded when anti-government protesters in Bangkok took over the city's two airports.
But some criticised the government for being late to help them.
One man, whose tour group had been stranded in Bangkok since Wednesday, a day after protesters invaded the city's international airport, said: 'We were worried we would never get back. We did not know why the government acted so slowly.'
Another man on the flight said: 'We saw many Hong Kong visitors stranded at the airport. They were not on package tours and did not know what to do. The government should offer more help.'
A government spokesman said 500 Hongkongers were brought home yesterday.
The Travel Industry Council expects 600 stranded travellers on group tours to return today.
But at least 460 Hong Kong people were still having trouble getting help or flights out, ATV News reported.
One stranded traveller, speaking to TVB News, said she had tried to call the government helpline 852-1868. 'But the officer only gave us phone numbers of airlines to buy tickets. What is the use of it? We need the government to arrange more flights to take us home.'
Thai authorities have opened the Utapao military airport, 140km from Bangkok, to civilian airliners. Cathay Pacific will send another plane to pick up travellers today and may send more tomorrow. Cathay said priority would be given to its customers.
Mainland authorities will begin sending planes today to transport 3,000 stranded mainlanders and more than 150 Macau residents are scheduled to be taken home on a charter flight organised by the macau government.
