Bangkok Airways Flight 266

Bangkok Airways Flight 266

The destroyed fuselage sitting on the side of a road in 2013
Accident
Date	4 August 2009 (2009-08-04)
Summary	Runway excursion on landing
Site	Samui Airport, Thailand 09°32′52″N100°03′44″E / 9.54778°N 100.06222°E / 9.54778; 100.06222
Aircraft
HS-PGL, the aircraft involved in the accident, pictured in March 2009
Aircraft type	ATR 72-500
Aircraft name	Pha Ngan
Operator	Bangkok Airways
IATA flight No.	PG266
ICAO flight No.	BKP266
Call sign	BANGKOK AIR 266
Registration	HS-PGL
Flight origin	Krabi Airport, Thailand
Destination	Samui Airport, Thailand
Occupants	72
Passengers	68
Crew	4
Fatalities	1
Injuries	41
Survivors	71

Bangkok Airways Flight 266 was a scheduled domestic passenger flight from Krabi Airport to Samui Airport, Thailand. On 4 August 2009, the aircraft skidded off the runway on landing and crashed into an old and unmanned control tower. One pilot died and 41 other people were injured. ^[1]

Accident

The aircraft is reported to have skidded off the runway and hit an old, unmanned control tower that was used as a fire-fighting station. The accident happened at around 14:15 local time (07:15 UTC). ^[2] One pilot was reported to have been killed. The co-pilot, who was stuck in the aircraft for more than two hours, was among the last evacuated from the stricken plane. Serious injuries included four passengers – two British, one Italian and one Swiss suffered broken legs, while two other British suffered less severe injuries. The co-pilot also had leg injuries. A total of 41 people were injured. ^[3] The METAR in force at the time of the accident was METAR VTSM 040700Z 29015KT 9000 FEW020TCU SCT120 BKN300 31/25 Q1007 A2974 TCU-NW. ^[4] This translates as METAR for Samui Airport, issued on the 4th of the month at 07:00 UTC, wind at 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph), direction 290° visibility 9 kilometres (5.6 mi; 4.9 nmi), few clouds at 2,000 feet (610 m), scattered clouds at 12,000 feet (3,700 m), broken clouds at 30,000 feet (9,100 m), temperature 31 °C (88 °F), dewpoint 25 °C (77 °F), altimeter 1007 milibar, towering cumulonimbus to north west. ^[5]

According to the final report by Aircraft Accident Investigation Committee of Thailand, this accident was caused by "the weather conditions at Samui International Airport when the aircraft was landing, with a surface wind direction 300 degrees and gusts between 25 and 35 knots, combined with the pilot did not go around when conducting a non-stabilized approach." ^[6]

Aircraft

The interior of the fuselage

The aircraft involved was an ATR 72-500, registered as HS-PGL, ^[7] msn 670. The aircraft first flew on 6 June 2001 with French registration F-WWER. It entered service with Bangkok Airways on 16 July 2001 re-registered HS-PGL. On 29 May 2006, it entered service with Siem Reap Airways International, returning to Bangkok Airways on 7 January 2009 after Siem Reap Airways International ceased trading. The aircraft was named Pha Ngan, and had been in service for approx. 20,000 hrs.^{[ citation needed ]}

Aftermath

The fuselage of the aircraft spent a few years on roadsides in different parts of Samui before being sunk in October 2013 as part of Majcha Air Samui Artificial Reef Project.

References

1. "Accident ATR 72-500 (72-212A) HS-PGL, Tuesday 4 August 2009". aviation-safety.net. Retrieved 10 January 2026.
2. "Pilot killed in Thai plane crash". BBC News. 4 August 2009. Archived from the original on 4 August 2009. Retrieved 4 August 2009.
3. "Fatal Bangkok Airways crash on Samui". Bangkok Post. Retrieved 4 August 2009.
4. "History for Sumui, Thailand". Wunderground. Retrieved 4 August 2009.
5. "METAR tutorial". Wunderground. Retrieved 4 August 2009.
6. "Final Report: Investigation on an accident ATR72-212A, HS-PGL Bangkok Airways Public Company Limited at Samui International Airport, Surat Thani Province on 4 August 2009". Aircraft Accident and Incident Investigation Commission Thailand. 30 September 2025. Retrieved 7 January 2026.
7. "Fatalities reported as Bangkok Airways ATR 72–500 skids off runway". Flightglobal. Retrieved 4 August 2009.

External links

• Accident in Samui on Tuesday 4 August 2009 Press Release – Bangkok Airways
• Final report by Aircraft Accident Investigation Committee of Thailand