The Royal Thai Air Force has purchased 4 new royal airplanes with a budget of 3.6 billion baht from the government. Commander-in-Chief of the Air Force said the planes and pilots had been selected to guarantee maximum safety. 

On the auspicious date, 9-09-2009, at 9.09 am Air Chief Marshal (ACM) Itthaporn Subhawong presided over the ‘Nine in the Hearts’ ceremony in honour of His Majesty the King in which he received one of the royal planes, an ATR 72-500, at the Air Force Airport.

At 09.19 am, the first of the four royal planes from France landed on the runway.

The Air Force has proposed purchasing 4 middle-sized planes: two serving as a royal airplane and a backup, and two as planes for VIPs.  The proposal was approved in principle by the government of Gen Surayud Chulanont.  A committee agreed to purchase the planes from Avions de Transport Regional Company together with interior fittings, spare parts, ground equipment, personnel training, and two standard hangars, with a total budget of 3,650 million baht. All planes will be attached to Fleet 603.

According to ACM Itthaporn, the existing royal planes are large-sized, and therefore are unable to land on short runways. The Air Force has solved the problem by using C-130s for some royal journeys, but the activities of each royal have increased.

‘Currently, we have a Boeing 737-800 as the royal plane which has been in commission since 2006, an Airbus 310-300 as a backup since 1991, and an Airbus 319 CJ for VIPs,’ the ACM said.

Itthaporn said that the Air Force had sent 8 pilots to be trained in France; 4 of them co-piloted the delivery of the ATR 72-500. The Air Force has carefully selected pilots to be sent for the training, considering their special qualities according to Military Plan 999 which concerns the security of the Royal Family. The first pilot was required to have at least 1,600 hours of flying experience, and at least 1,000 hours of experience of flying multi-engined planes.

‘The pilots and personnel will have to take some time, about 8-10 months or more of training, to be fully qualified to be responsible for the royal flights which require maximum safety. When they are ready, we will present the planes to the Royal Family. When all the four planes are handed over, they should be sufficient to support royal duties. When it is time to provide more, we will have to do our duty, because the royal planes are retired after only 15 years for maximum safety,’ the ACM said.

According to the ACM, the procurement of the fleet is sponsored by the government under the tied budget for 2007-9, without any budgetary restraint. However, the Air Force’s procurement plan for other aircraft has been affected, as the budget was cut. Nevertheless, the Air Force was fully supported in procuring the new royal fleet.

In line with the Cabinet’s resolution, the budget for 2010 has been cut by 200 billion baht, affecting all the armed forces’ development plans. The Air Force budget was reduced by 3 billion baht compared to the previous year’s budget.

All the Air Force procurement plans therefore have to be postponed. The Air Force has informed the Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Minister for security Suthep Thaugsuban, and the Minister of Defence Gen Pravit Wongsuwan of its needs. The ACM hoped to get what the Air Force asked for, if the country’s budget improved next year.