Security notched up at Hat Yai Airport

Hat Yai Airport has beefed up its security after a man was able to board a Nok Air flight, 5 April, without carrying any identification or travel documents.
Airport director, Group Captain Norrani Phonkanon, has now instructed airlines to check the boarding passes of passengers one more time before letting them enter the aircraft, bringing the number of ID checks to four.
He blamed the incident that occurred, last Saturday, squarely on a lapse of security at airline and airport levels.
According to the National News Bureau of Thailand, Sutthidet Mahaphan (39), a resident of Hat Yai, Songkhla managed to board a Nok Air flight without identification or a ticket. Relatives said he was mentally disturbed and undergoing treatment at Songkhla Ratchanakharin Mental Hospital.
Nicknamed Aziz, by the media, the man was able to walk through identification and security checkpoints at the airport and finally board Nok Air’s DD7105 flight to Bangkok at 1100 last Saturday.
After boarding, the man insisted he be given a front row seat even though it was already occupied. When cabin crew asked him for identification, he argued that he had put his ID in checked baggage.
A Nok Air employee has since been suspended and a fact-finding committee has been established to investigate the incident.
Nok Air CEO Patee Sarasin apologised to passengers for the incident.
The message was posted on Twitter handle @Patee122, which also indicated that the company met with police and airport security to strengthen safety measures.
Meanwhile, the airline’s Facebook page made an announcement regarding the incident, echoing its CEO’s apology and claiming that the airline would put passenger safety first.
Hat Yai Airport is supervised by Airports of Thailand. It has not made a public apology for the incident even though officials shared the blame.

Sourced: ttrweekly