STRANDED FOREIGNERS IN MAD RUSH TO GET OUT OF BANGKOK By D. Arul Rajoo

BANGKOK, Nov 28 (Bernama) -- Thousands of people stranded in Bangkok due to airport blockades by anti-government protestors have joined a mad rush to get out of Thailand, and are snapping up plane, bus and train tickets which are selling like hot cakes.

With the Utapao Airport opened today for limited commercial operations,
foreigners are swarming airlines which have managed to get a slot at the
airport, located about 140 km south of Bangkok.

Malaysia Airlines (MAS) is operating one flight out of Utapao and two more
Saturday but all tickets have been sold out. There is also a huge demand for
outgoing tickets from KL International Airport to India, Europe and the United
States.

"Our tickets for the two flights between Phuket and Kuala Lumpur for today
(Friday) and tomorrow (Saturday) have been sold out but we are trying to add
more seats by bringing in larger aircraft, as well as one more charter flight,"
said MAS Area Manager for Thailand, A. Vijayakumaran.

There was large number of people of various nationalities trying to buy
tickets at the MAS office in the capital, but Vijayakumaran said MAS was still
trying to get slots on Sunday as Thai aviation authorities are having problems
trying to accommodate many requests from airline companies due to the limited
facilities at Utapao.

Bangkok's air routes were shut down since Monday when anti-government
protestors took over the Suvarnabhumi and Don Muang airports.

Among the stranded foreigners was an Indian national, Pardeep, who is
desperately trying to return to Mumbai where there has been a terrorist attack.

"I had a wonderful holiday in Koh Samui with my wife but now I am very
worried as my two children and my mother are in Mumbai," said Pardeep, who was
headed for the Malaysian Embassy to get visas after having bought tickets at the
MAS office.

Pardeep said he managed to get tickets for Sunday but was prepared to take
a
bus or train Friday to Malaysia to enable them return to Mumbai as soon as
possible.

Shankar, 35, who came with 23 colleagues of a pharmaceutical company in
Chennai, India, said they were supposed to fly home on Thai Airways on Thursday
but were now stuck here.

"It is too costly for us to stay longer here. We tried to book train
tickets to Penang but they have been sold out," he said.

There was also a huge demand for buses and vans as stranded foreigners
tried
all means to cross into Malaysia.

It takes about 20 hours for a train ride from Bangkok to Penang, Malaysia,
while a bus takes 10 to 12 hours to get to Hatyai in southern Thailand.

A tour company operator said all his buses and vans have been rented out
for
the next three days as many tour groups from China and Japan used them to travel
to Malaysia via Hatyai to get connecting flights in Malaysia.

The buses are rented out at 35,000 baht (RM3,596) per trip and vans up to
18,000 baht (RM1,849) per trip, almost triple the normal rates.
(US$1=RM3.62)

The Malaysian Embassy in Bangkok has been swarmed by foreigners seeking
visa to enter Malaysia.

"There were many Indians, Europeans, Chinese and others applying for visa.
Normally the processing takes two to three days but based on special requests
from other embassies seeking our assistance, we are speeding up the process," an
official said.

Among the stranded Malaysians were 28 staff of Biotech Corporation who came
to attend the BioAsia 2008 conference. Seven of them took a van back to Malaysia
while the rest managed to get MAS tickets for Saturday.
-- BERNAMA