Thailand hopes to soar to the top of the aviation industry
As Asia edges towards becoming the world’s leading travel market, Thailand is gearing up to become a full-service aerospace hub, but does it have the facilities, resources and safety standards to dominate this lucrative industry? On an icy cold January day in 2009, US Airways Flight 1549 travelling at 316 feet per second struck a flock of migratory geese shortly after take-off from New York’s LaGuardia airport. After losing thrust in both engines due to bird ingestion, Captain Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger immediately switched on the auxiliary power unit – a small turbine engine that delivers supplementary power to aircraft systems. Seconds later, the crew made an emergency water landing on the Hudson River. The APU had provided the necessary power to keep the flight controls and displays working, allowing the aircraft to touch down safely. All 155 people on board survived. Located in the tail cone compartment of almost every commercial airliner, the APU is just one of many critical aircraft components that are currently being repaired and overhauled in Thailand. Indeed, over the past two decades the country has been laying the foundation to become a formidable competitor in the region’s multi billion dollar aircraft maintenance and manufacturing industries.
