stuff.co.nz New Zealand travel agent Phil Harris said the volcano crisis was ''a real nightmare''. About seven customers' travel plans had been affected and many others were asking what they should do. His daughter, Keelie Harris, 26, was en route to London and had been stuck on Phuket since Friday, but insurance had paid for accommodation and meals. ''She's lapping it up. She said, 'Dad, if I had to be stranded anywhere this is the place to be'.''


A daily wrap of Thailand news, with a Phuket perspective, plus relevant reports from national and international media.

businessweek.com ''We'll take any flight to Europe,'' said Dirk Maertens, 52, slumped against a railing at Bangkok's international airport with his wife and 16-year-old son. The Maertens slept on plastic seats at the airport after their flight home to Belgium was canceled. "When there is a flight, you have to be quick - you have to get on it, you can't be too far away," said Claire Maertens, 49, explaining why the family won't leave the airport. "One volcano, and the whole of Europe is down." Modern Europe has never seen such a travel disruption.


bangkokpost.com Suvarnabhumi director Niran Thiranartsin said 99 flights from Suvarnabhumi to Europe had been cancelled. Half of the 15,000 stranded THAI passengers were grounded at Suvarnabhumi, an official said. Inbound and outbound flights between Bangkok and Rome will be increased from four to 11 flights a week, starting today. Inbound and outbound flights between Bangkok and Madrid will be increased from three to seven flights a week, starting on Friday. THAI flies to 13 European cities, but now can only land at Rome, Madrid, Athens and Moscow.


tradingmarkets.com Some 120 flights between Singapore and Europe have been canceled since Thursday, including the 38 flights that were canceled at the Changi Airport on Sunday.


wsj.com A Singapore Airlines spokesperson at Changi said: ''At this point Rome and Athens airports are open to us. We have put all stranded passengers in hotels - we can't put extra flights to open airports mainly because those airports have imposed restrictions and they are not accepting more flights. The situation is still fluid so there is no estimate on the financial damage yet.''


bbc.co.uk Britons stranded by flight restrictions as a result of the volcanic ash cloud from Iceland could be returned to the UK through a ''Spanish hub''. UK flight restrictions have been extended until at least 1900 BST on Monday. Ideas included flying those outside the no-fly zone to Spain then using the Royal Navy and requisitioning merchant ships to help return them to the UK.


telegraph.co.uk The Icelandic volcano causing travel chaos across Europe could go on erupting for months, geologists have warned.Volcanic ash has begun to fall across Britain, coating surfaces with a fine layer of dust and raising fears for people with breathing difficulties. Experts warned of shortages of some foods with produce destined for British shops rotting in airport warehouses in other parts of the world.


Associated Press Air France says it has safely carried out a test flight over France for the first time since a volcanic ash plume shut down aviation over Europe. More test flights will follow. European airlines are pushing national regulators to reopen airspace across Europe, saying the ash appears to have diminished enough to make flying safe.


abc.net.au Lufthansa and Air Berlin have questioned the decision to close much of Europe's airspace saying it is not based on proper testing and their aircraft showed no signs of damage after flying without passengers. ''The decision to close the airspace was made exclusively as a result of data from a computer simulation at the Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre in London,'' said Air Berlin chief executive Joachim Hunold. ''Not one single weather balloon has been sent up to measure how much volcanic ash is in the air.''


nationmultimedia.com Elite forces from all three branches of the armed forces and police are being mobilised to carry out operations to remove red-shirt demonstrators from the Rajprasong intersection in Bangkok. A top-level meeting agreed that the military would no longer tolerate armed terrorists blending in with red-shirt mobs in Bangkok. A joint intelligence report concluded that the armed men were recruited from three groups of people: separatists in the South, mercenaries from neighboring countries, and paramilitary men trained by active officers allied with the red shirts. All tall buildings nearby Rajprasong intersection are now manned by security officials.


todayonline.com Thailand's elite-backed yellow shirts have vowed to take action if the government fails to deal with red-clad protesters within a week, raising fears of clashes between the rival groups.


nytimes.com ''We give the government seven days to return peace to the country or we, every member of the Peoples' Alliance for Democracy, will perform our duty under the Constitution,'' said Chamlong Srimaung, a leader of the yellow shirts. ''Prepare yourselves for the biggest rally when we will eat and sleep on the street again,'' he said, referring to months of crippling protests by the yellow shirts in 2008 that culminated in a week-long takeover of Bangkok's airports.


bangkokpost.com Red shirt protesters are planning to mobilise another mass rally in Bangkok tomorrow in a move sure to ratchet up tensions in the capital. And the government Centre for the Resolution of Emergency Situations has vowed to use force against red shirts who try to seize arms from officers blocking more protesters from joining the rally.


scmp.com 'It is a process that we have to go through and I think we should be brave enough to go through all of this and to talk about even the taboo subject of the institution of the monarchy,'' Foreign Ministter Kasit Piromya said in Washington. Kasit's comments are remarkable. They go to the heart of the political quagmire in which Thailand has been sinking for five years. They also reflect a building undercurrent, both among ordinary Thais increasingly fearful for their future and local academics - who are starting to sound the alarm, albeit in a carefully calibrated fashion.


donga.com The US Educational Testing Service will toughen the running of the Scholastic Aptitude Test in certain countries to prevent cheating. The move comes after Korean police caught test takers who cheated using the time difference by taking the SAT in Thailand and leaking answers to test takers in Korea. The educational testing organisation announced it will beef up security at testing sites in Korea, Thailand and Vietnam, beginning with the May 1 test.


timesonline.co.uk Tesco is set to reveal yet another year of record turnover and profits, capping a decade that has seen it nearly treble in size. Two thirds of Tesco's floorspace is overseas, but it still contributes only 20 per cent of profits, which Tesco argues only underlines its potential for growth. Apart from Fresh & Easy, its American business, Tesco's overseas operations are in emerging markets, such as China, Thailand and Central Europe.


reuters.com Senator Charles Schumer said that he has commitments from five airlines to not follow the lead of Spirit Airlines by charging passengers a fee for carry-on baggage. Schumer said that in personal calls to airline top executives he received promises from American Airlines, a unit of AMR Corp; Delta Air Lines Inc; JetBlue Airways; United Airlines, a unit of UAL Corp; and US Air Airways not to charge fees for carry-on bags.


telegraphindia.com AirAsia plans to start flights between Calcutta and Bangkok soon. ''We have approached the civil aviation ministry in India and expect to start operations by the middle of next year,'' Tony Fernandes, the group chief executive officer of AirAsia, said in Kuala Lumpur. Existing daily direct flights are operated by Jet Airways, Thai Airways and Kingfisher


todayonline.com There are still about 20,000 nuclear warheads in the world, many of them on trigger alert, Singapore noted in its statement at the International Disarmament and Non-Proliferation Conference in the Iranian capital of Tehran. Singapore, which has not ruled out nuclear energy, will start a feasibility study ''which will entail a careful and rigorous examination of the technical, economic and safety aspects of nuclear energy''.


smh.com.au The Oasis of the Seas is claiming another world first. The massive liner, which cost $1.47 billion to build and boasts the world's first living park at sea, is officially now the first cruise ship to carry more than 6000 guests. At 204,000 tonnes, it is four times heavier than the Titanic, and 40 percent larger than the next biggest cruise ship, the Freedom of the Seas.


4hoteliers.com Klaus Rauter has been named General Manager of both Andara Villa Management and the Andara Residences in Phuket. He had previously served in various management roles for the Banyan Tree Phuket, Six Senses and Astudo Hotels & Resorts. Darren Shaw has been appointed General Manager of the Outrigger Laguna Phuket Resort and Villas. Shaw was previously the General Manager of the Outrigger on the Lagoon Fiji.



On April 23 A 1001 Arabian Nights @ Sienna Rocks evening of fashion, entertainment and food is being held at the Cape Sienna Resort, Phuketwan's Resort of the Year 2009, from 6pm. The charity evening aims to raise money for 25 scholarships for underprivileged Thai students through the Phuket Asia Foundation. Tickets cost 500 baht, with the first two drinks free. For details, telephone 076-337300 or E: siennanews@capesienna.com

April 22 Phuket's Clean Beach campaign returns with monthly volunteer efforts designed to keep Phuket sparkling
April 28 GreenLOVE festival to raise awareness about local and international environmental issues and solutions, British International School 8am-3pm.
April 30 Lions Club Of Phuket Pearl is holding a jazz concert and dance night, performed by children from the Phuket Academy of Dance, at the Royal Phuket Marina. Details: 081 477 0342.
May 31-June 5 Eight-nation football tournament for players over 55 at Surakul Stadium in Phuket City. Britain, Australia, New Zealand, Thailand, Taiwan, Iran, Armenia competing.
May Annual Phuket seafood festival.
May Date to be finalised for Muay Thai kickboxing competition at Laguna Phuket.
May 21-23 Paragliding on Phuket.
June 4-13 Phuket International Film Festival, Coliseum Cineplex, Phuket City.
June 13 Laguna Phuket International Marathon. Fun runs, too.
December 4-11 Phuket King's Cup Regatta