THE ARRIVAL of a US aircraft carrier off Phuket shortly will test the ability of Phuket's leaders to manage local taxis as well as giving the island a huge cash economic boost.

Returning to Phuket soon, Phuketwan has learned, will be the world's largest carrier, USS Ronald Reagan, with a cruiser and a destroyer, a combined battle group carrying up to 8000 crew for liberty leave on Phuket.

The battle group's latest assignment has been providing relief to Japan following the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, with the crew washing down the Reagan's flight deck after the carrier was hit by radiation from the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant.

An even warmer welcome can be expected on Phuket. When the USS Ronald Reagan was last anchored off the island, an estimated $US1 million was delivered to Phuket's economy every day.

Last year the nuclear-powered carrier USS Nimitz followed the Reagan - and only later did the full extent of the problem with blockades by local taxi drivers at Phuket's east coast deep sea port become apparent.

More in-depth talks are expected between US officials and Phuket's administrators in an effort to make sure there is no repetition of the taxi blockade that occurred on April 6, preventing passengers on a luxury cruise ship from enjoying their one-day stay on Phuket.

There is an understandable degree of nervousness because Phuket administrators have previously promised that there would be no more trouble for the US Navy with local taxi drivers.

However, police had to be called to settle a dispute involving taxi drivers and the last US destroyer to anchor off Phuket for liberty leave.

The leader of the local east coast taxis involved in the cruise liner dispute, Narong Kumbaan, told Phuketwan today: ''We don't have a problem with the US Navy. We plan to operate the usual system.

''We will have 250 taxis ready for the ships, and 30 taxis at a time will go into the deep sea port area and can be hired if sailors want to hire them. More taxis will go in as hired taxis come out.''

US crews have the option of a free courtesy shuttle bus from the deep sea port on the east coast to Patong on the west coast, but those who wish to catch a taxi as an alternative are able to do so.

With the cruise ship, though, taxi drivers demanded and won a 50-50 share of passengers with a tour operator. Because the standoff took more than four hours to resolve, most of the passengers on the luxurious Silver Spirit missed their chance to spend time relaxing on Phuket.

Before its relief assignment in Japan, the Ronald Reagan joined the Indian Navy in exercises at sea.

China recently gained its first aircraft carrier, and the US appears set to continue to assert its strategic grip across the Indian and Pacific Oceans.