Koh Samui plane forced to land by Singapore air force

'Singapore panic' flight was by Australians

Singapore (dpa) - An Australian-registered plane caused a 50- minute shutdown of Singapore's airspace to commercial aircraft while 16 flights circled, aviation officials said Thursday.

Two Australians were aboard the Cessna 208 Caravan float plane, which approached Tuesday night without an approved flight plan, prompting two Air Force F16 fighter jets to scramble during Changi Airport's busiest period.

The single-engine aircraft, which can land on water, began its flight from Thailand's Koh Samui island.

The Singapore Air Force tracked the plane as it flew toward the city-state. The two missile-armed fighters intercepted the Caravan and signalled the Australians to land at the central runway at 8pm, The Straits Times account of the incident said.

The two Australians were escorted away by police, who are investing the incident.

The plane was bought this month by Mary Cummins, who co-owns a tourist adventure flight company with Rhys Thomas, a former pilot with Australian airline Ansett, the newspaper said. The plane had previously been flown by an airline in Koh Samui.

Aviation experts said the air force has been operating an enhanced defence against airborne terrorists 24 hours a day since the September 11, 2001 attacks in the United States.

Altogether, the shutdown of commercial airspace affected 23 aircraft, disrupting flights in and out of Changi.

Thousands of dollars in fuel was lost as the airliners circled Singapore while awaiting permission to land.

Bangkok Post

I think you will already find this story in the thread about what Australians can be proud of :)

ahhh, I don't actually bother reading that rubbish, I assumed 1 post would have been enough for that thread :)

Hope you didn't have any money on it with CmN!

Us Australians take ourselves quite seriously :)

glad someone does, altho hantchukova and ivanovic match is giving ur country some credibility

suspect that it was Coco's old sea plane being repossessed ...........

note that one of the principles of Coco's was recently arrested as he was attempting to depart Samui on charges of bouncing a cheque to a construction company to the value of 750K .

Plane to Singapore was trying to reach Samui
BREAKING NEWS

Singapore (dpa) - An Australian-registered plane that disrupted commercial traffic by causing a shutdown of Singapore's airspace was on a test flight and expected to return to Thailand's Koh Samui island, authorities said on Saturday.

More details have been unveiled about the Cessna 208 Caravan float plane that approached Tuesday night without an approved flight plan, prompting two Air Force F16 fighter jets to scramble during Changi Airport's busiest hours.

The flight with two Australians aboard was supposed to last 50 minutes. It "went off the air" two-and-a-half hours later, despite repeated calls by air-traffic controllers at Koh Samui Airport, The Straits Times said.

The 50-minute lockdown of Singapore's airspace ended at 8 pm.

The plane was registered to Mary Cummins on January 8, the report said. She and business partner Rhys Thomas co-own Kimberley Extreme, an adventure tourism company based in the Australian town of Broome.

Thomas, a pilot who used to fly with the now-defunct Ansett airline, was reported to have been one of the Cessna's pilots.

Police have been questioning the two Australians. The duo have not been charged and are not in custody, but their passports have been impounded, the newspaper said.

The plane previously carried Thai registration and was used by the Coco Seaplanes Company, believed to be defunct.

Sixteen flights were forced to circle while the drama unfolded.

The air force tracked the plane as it flew toward the city-state. The two missile-armed fighters intercepted the Caravan and signalled the Australians to land at the central runway at 8 pm.

The shutdown of commercial airspace affected 23 aircraft, disrupting flights in and out of Changi

bangkokpost.com

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Mid

suspect that it was Coco's old sea plane being repossessed ...........

note that one of the principles of Coco's was recently arrested as he was attempting to depart Samui on charges of bouncing a cheque to a construction company to the value of 750K .

---

Wasnt repossessed. Alans wife did a "cheap deal" with the purchasers.
Look at the thai registration change on HS-CCO.
It went into her name in December. She then promptly sold it and it was got out of thailand quick.
If I was owed money by cocos, I would be after the plane.
All 1.2 M USD of it!

^Correct.
But that isn't a surprise for those who have followed the Alan Sadd saga, the rise and fall of the CoCo empire.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by flyboy

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Mid

suspect that it was Coco's old sea plane being repossessed ...........

note that one of the principles of Coco's was recently arrested as he was attempting to depart Samui on charges of bouncing a cheque to a construction company to the value of 750K .

---

Wasnt repossessed. Alans wife did a "cheap deal" with the purchasers.
Look at the thai registration change on HS-CCO.
It went into her name in December. She then promptly sold it and it was got out of thailand quick.
If I was owed money by cocos, I would be after the plane.
All 1.2 M USD of it!

---

thanxs ,

and welcome aboard :)

So, what's the upshot of this - I doubt entering Sing airspace unannounced will endear them to the authorities there - can't get away with backhanders.

Hey Rhys.

I hear you are still in Singapore.
Also heard the bill for the F-16's as well as the expenses from all those airline companies you XXXXXX over is just around the corner old mate!

And to you to Mary. Ducking for cover as you always do.
Do they have extradition from Australia to singapore or Thailand?
Not sure which comes first.
We would love to see you over here!!

As for thailand, lots of people gunning for you both!
But only after the singapore mob finishes with the both of you first.
And Rhys, dont go back to South Africa.
Understand some lovely people there would love to have you to dinner.

:kma:

I pay taxes to have the air force protect me and my family. They should shoot first and ask questions later.

All a mystery to me but sounds like there is a background story there!
Anybody out there want to give a quick rundown ?:)

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Happyman

All a mystery to me but sounds like there is a background story there!
Anybody out there want to give a quick rundown ?:)

---

Flyboy seems to have his knickers in a twist about it . . .

Police widen probe into air intrusion
Police widen probe into air intrusion
By David Boey

A POLICE investigation into the airspace intrusion that shut down Changi Airport for close to an hour on Jan 22 has turned to how the pilot of the plane got his aircraft.

The Cessna 208 Caravan Amphibian seaplane, said to be worth US$1.2 million (S$1.7 million), has been impounded.

Singapore police are holding on to the passports of the pilot, Mr Rhys Thomas, said to be in his late 50s to early 60s, and his sole passenger, Mr Darren Johnson, said to be a flight engineer in his 40s and both Australians are still “assisting with investigations”.

The Straits Times understands that the police are looking into three suspicious areas.

First, the flight. The plane did not have permission to leave Thai airspace for its flight from Koh Samui airport that day.

It had been cleared only for 50 minute test flight in the vicinity of the airport.
Instead, the pilots went on a 1,000km, six hour trip - without immigration clearance or filing a flight plan, which is required under international aviation rules.

The history of the plane has also thrown up some questions.

Records showed the plane changed owners twice in a few weeks recently.

Ownership was first transferred last December to a Mrs Mali Sadd.

Barely a month later, it was sold to some Australians – supposedly on the cheap – and was registered as belonging to a Ms Mary Cummins.

Ms Cummins and Mr Thomas run a tour agency called Horizontal Falls Adventure Tours in Broome, a coastal resort town in Western Australia.

They also operate a company called Kimberley Seaplanes, which has two other Cessnas of the type that was piloted by Mr Thomas.

Before these transfers, the plane had been owned by Coco Seaplanes, which was in turn owned by Coco International Properties, a company set up to develop beachfront real estate on Koh Samui.

The company was headed by a Mr Alan Sadd – the husband of Mrs Mali Sadd.

As it turns out, Mr Sadd had been in trouble with the authorities in Bangkok for failing to pay 750 000 baht (S$34,000) to a construction firm. He was arrested on Jan 15 as he attempted to leave Koh Samui for Taiwan.

Finally, Mr Thomas background is also being looked into.

It has emerged that Singapore police have contacted an Australian aviator who once flew for him.

The aviator, who declined to be named, told the Straits Times when contacted that he was arrested in the Seychelles while piloting a plane for Mr Thomas that had false registration.

The airspace intrusion on Jan 22 sparked an air defence response, and the episode ended when two missile-armed Republic of Singapore Air Force F16D jets forced the Cessna to land at Changi Airport’s central runway.

The resulting lockdown of Singapore’s airspace triggered by the intrusion affected 17 inbound flights, which were forced into holding patterns. Six departures were delayed.

The two Aussies were questioned immediately upon landing, and it is understood that Mr Thomas initially claimed that he had problems with the landing gear of his seaplane.

He claimed that was the reason for the diversion to Singapore.

But as the investigations progressed, the new details surrounding the flight aroused the police’s suspicious.

A defence source noted that the current probe has gone on longer than the investigation into the last reported airspace intrusion in August 2003.

The source said that probe was “wrapped up within a day” after the authorities learnt that an electrical fault prevented a Portuguese pilot from talking to air traffic controllers.

[email protected]

Who or what is Cocos and what is the story?

Cocos is a failed property developer in Thailand.
Alan Sadd the CEO was arrested for bad debts recently in Thailand.
He was caught and arrested trying to flee thailand (Koh Samui) with his wife.
Cocos had a subsantive asset in an aircraft.
Alan sold it to his wife cheap to get it out of the Company.
She then immediately sold it to some shady characters in Australia.
She lined her pockets with investors funds.
The characters she dealt with in Australia seem to be dodgy also.

Good to see that the walls are starting to crumble around these bastards.

from news.com.au

AN Australian pilot who flew a light plane into Singapore's air space without permission has been refused a request to return to Australia ahead of his next court appearance.

Singapore scrambled F-16 fighter jets to intercept a Cessna 208 after tracking the plane's approach to Singapore and discovering it had no approved flight plan on January 22.

The Australian-registered Cessna was then escorted to land at Singapore's Changi Airport.

Commercial air space over the busy airport was locked down for 50 minutes, forcing at least 16 aircraft to circle, delaying arrivals and departures, and costing airlines thousands of dollars in fuel.
Two Australian men on board the plane had been flying it from Thailand to Australia via Singapore.
The pilot, Rhys Thomas, was charged with flying an aircraft without a certificate of airworthiness and was granted bail.

A spokeswoman for the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) said the former Ansett pilot was due to appear at a pre-trial conference on Friday and had made a request to return to Australia temporarily on compassionate grounds.

The request was supported by the Australian government but rejected by Singapore, the spokeswoman said.

"The request was considered by the Singapore judicial authorities, but was denied,'' she said.

Thomas faces a maximum penalty of one year's jail, a $A3900 fine or both.

The passenger in the Cessna was not charged with any offence and was allowed to leave Singapore.

The Cessna 208 Caravan float plane, which can land on water, was recently bought by Mary Cummins, who co-owns the Broome-based Horizontal Falls Travel Adventure business with Thomas.

The company offers tourists air and sea tours of the remote waterfalls and gorges along the rugged Kimberley coast.

Staff at the business' Broome office today said Ms Cummins was not available for comment.

The Cessna, which can carry about a dozen people, had previously been flown by an airline in Koh Samui, in southern Thailand.

The last time Singapore's air force scrambled its jets was in August 2003, when two Super Skyhawk warplanes intercepted a civilian plane that tried to land at Tengah Air Base.

AN Australian aboard a plane intercepted by fighter jets in Singapore says the dramatic incident was the result of lies told by someone in Thailand angry at being denied a bribe.

Singapore scrambled F-16 fighter jets to intercept a Cessna 208, flown by Broome pilot Rhys Thomas, on January 22, saying it had not registered a flight plan.

The Australian-registered Cessna, en route from Thailand to Australia, was then escorted to land at Singapore's Changi Airport.

Commercial airspace over the airport was locked down for 50 minutes, forcing at least 16 aircraft to circle, delaying arrivals and departures and costing airlines thousands of dollars in fuel.

Mr Thomas was charged with flying an aircraft without a certificate of airworthiness and was granted bail.

His passenger, Darren Johnson, an engineer for Horizontal Falls Adventure Tours in the Kimberley, said the real facts of the matter had been covered up.

"The real reason our aircraft was assessed as a security threat by Singapore is that someone deliberately made false statements about our aircraft to Singapore authorities whilst we were in flight,'' Mr Johnson said.

"These included (that the) aircraft was stolen, (the) aircraft was not registered and (the) aircraft had left Thai airspace under suspicious circumstances.

"Someone was angry with Mr Thomas because he refused to pay bribes in Thailand.

"I witnessed bribes being asked by two Thai individuals at the time of settlement of the purchase of the aircraft at Koh Samui on January 21.''

Mr Johnson said that the next day, January 22, Mr Thomas decided to divert to Singapore after the plane developed a landing gear problem while doing an authorised test run to Koh Samui, an island in southern Thailand.

He said Mr Thomas notified Singaporean authorities of the flight plan by radio, which was accepted and the plane cleared by Singapore to land at Seletar airport.

The aircraft, however, was intercepted by fighter jets over Singapore and escorted to land at Changi.

Mr Johnson said the next day it was reported that Singapore had no flight plan or details of the flight, that the plane had tried to intrude into Singapore airspace without a clearance and was in no radio contact.

Singapore authorities acted appropriately in scrambling their jets in response to the false information they received, Mr Johnson said.

"Given the ... information, the Singapore Air Force acted appropriately and professionally and we are very lucky not to have been shot down,'' he said.

Mr Johnson arrived back in Perth last Sunday but Mr Thomas remains in Singapore after being refused permission to return to Australia on compassionate grounds, after his mother suffered a heart attack.

Mr Thomas, who is 59, was due to appear at a pre-trial conference today and faces a maximum penalty of one year's jail, a $3,900 fine or both.

Mr Johnson was released without charge.

He said he was concerned about Mr Thomas, who was under a large amount of stress.

news.com.au

Samui 'panic pilot' still held in Singapore


Singapore (dpa) - An Australian pilot who caused a temporary shutdown of Singapore's airspace was denied court approval to leave the city-state to attend to personal matters, news reports said Wednesday.

Rhys Henry Thomas, 59, was charged late last month with flying a Cessna float plane on January 22 without a valid certificate of airworthiness.

District Judge John Ng's denial on Tuesday was the second since February 28. Thomas again sought leave to visit his mother in an Australian hospital, The Straits Times said.

In addition to compassionate grounds, Thomas cited financial losses.

Two air force fighter jets were dispatched to escort Thomas' plane to Changi Airport when he entered Singapore's airspace after leaving Thailand.

Flights in the city-state were delayed for 50 minutes amid security fears.

A nine-day hearing starts Monday.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Lee Cheow Han, in opposing the application for leave, said that Thomas had only himself to blame for his financial losses.

The accused "does not have anything here that can be seen as a compelling reason for him to come back," Ng was quoted as saying.

bangkokpost.com

Broome pilot Rhys Henry Thomas fined in Singapore

Article from: Agence France-Presse

April 01, 2008 06:10pm

A WA pilot whose intrusion into Singapore airspace led fighter jets to scramble and halted commercial air traffic has been fined, avoiding a possible jail term.

Rhys Henry Thomas, 59, of Broome, pleaded guilty yesterday to flying a Cessna float plane without an airworthiness certificate, newspapers reported.

Judge Danielle Yeow today ordered the former Ansett pilot to pay the maximum fine of 5000 Singapore dollars ($3970), but Thomas escaped a possible jail term of up to one year.

Singapore scrambled two F-16 fighter jets on January 22 to intercept Thomas' Cessna, which defence officials said did not have an approved flight plan.

His lawyer, Salem Ibrahim, told the court that Thomas had noticed a problem with the plane's landing gear after he took off from the Thai resort island of Koh Samui.

He decided to fly on and burn off the plane's dangerous fuel load before attempting a landing at Singapore's secondary Seletar Airport, which he chose partly because of its maintenance facilities, Mr Salem said.

But Singapore airforce fighters intercepted him and forced the small plane down at the main Changi Airport.

The incident caused the shutdown of commercial air space over the busy airport for 50 minutes.

At least 16 aircraft were forced to circle, delaying arrivals and departures, and costing airlines thousands of dollars in fuel.

"I am pleased that the ordeal is finally over. The only thing I want to do now is to catch the next flight out of Singapore to go back to Australia to see my mother," Thomas said.

The Straits Times earlier reported that the pilot's mother had suffered a heart attack in February.

Thomas is co-owner of the Broome-based Horizontal Falls Travel Adventure company, which offers tourists air and sea tours of the remote waterfalls and gorges along the rugged Kimberley coast.

A passenger travelling with Thomas, also said to be an Australian man, was not charged over the incident.

He should have declared an emergency and landed in a field somewhere....and sorted it out quietly.

He plead guilty to flying without the right cert
and was fined SGD5000. . . case closed?