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People pose for a photo on Mai Khao Beach in Phuket. Source: Facebook

Tourists in Thailand taking Phuket airport runway selfies could face death penalty

  • Mai Khao beach in Phuket is popular with selfie seekers the world over, as aircraft take a low approach to land at the nearby airport
  • But they are distracting pilots and authorities have now banned them from entering the area. The maximum penalty for trespassing is death
Thailand

For selfie seekers, it’s the perfect Instagram-ready shot: standing on a beach with outstretched arms as a massive airliner soars overhead.

Few places in the world can offer such a vantage point, which is why Mai Khao beach in Thailand’s Phuket province has proved so popular. But recent changes to the law mean tourists hoping for their very own “runway selfie” now risk life and limb – and not just because of the aeroplanes.
An aircraft flies over Mai Khao Beach to land at Phuket International Airport. Photo: Twitter
Concerns over aviation safety have led to the introduction of a 9km-long exclusion zone on the beach, with the maximum penalty for trespassing being death.

Vijit Kaewsaiteam, vice-president of Phuket International Airport, told local media the ban was imposed to prevent pilots from getting distracted.

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Some had been dazzled by bright lights that were shone into the cockpit at night, he said, while drone photography also posed a safety risk.

Anyone found to be endangering an aircraft in Thailand can face between five years and life imprisonment. Capital punishment is reserved for the worst offenders.

But some have questioned how practical it will be to impose the exclusion zone, given how easily accessible Mai Khao beach is at present.

“I took photos there two years ago, when it was not made popular by social media yet,” said Sukris Koyakradej, a member of Phuket Tourist Association’s executive committee. “I don’t think the airport can block the entrance to the beach because it is not part of the runway.”

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Tharika Nokkaew, from Sirinat National Park that oversees the beach’s management, said no restrictions had been put in place yet “and there are always a lot of tourists there all the time”.

Phuket is one of Thailand’s tourism hotspots – particularly popular with Chinese and Russian visitors.

An estimated 2.19 million Chinese visited Phuket last year, up from 1.82 million the year before. Visitors from Russia numbered 670,000 in 2018 and about 550,000 in 2017.

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A ferry disaster last July in which 47 Chinese tourists died has hurt visitor numbers. Thamonpat Pinyo, from the Phuket Chamber of Commerce, said they had seen 10 per cent fewer visitors year on year ahead of Thai New Year celebrations later this month.
More than 10.5 million Chinese tourists visited Thailand last year, contributing about one-quarter of the country’s 2 trillion baht (US$63 billion) in annual tourism revenue.
This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as: ‘Runway selfie’ fans risk landing in jail
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