An update to my previous post…
Update two: September 10 — see Tweets embedded at the end of this post. Star Alliance said last night that “painting over of logos” is not Star Alliance policy. And an emailed statement from Thai Airways shortly thereafter confirmed this.
The AP on last night’s accident:
A Thai Airways Airbus 330-300 skidded off the runway while landing at Bangkok’s main airport after its landing gear malfunctioned, the airline said Monday. Thirteen people were injured while evacuating the plane.
After the accident, workers on a crane blacked out the Thai Airways logo on the tail and body of the aircraft, as part of an effort to protect the airline’s image according to Star Alliance guidelines, an official said. It was the second mishap in less than two weeks for Thailand’s national carrier.
And:
Thai Airways official Smud Poom-On said that “blurring the logo” after an accident was a recommendation from Star Alliance known as the “crisis communication rule,” meant to protect the image of both the airline and other members of Star Alliance.
Then came a Business Insider post, accompanied by Reuters photos, with the headline:
Airline Awkwardly Blacks Out Logo From Jet That Skidded Off The Runway
Click through to see the pics.
Elsewhere, The Guardian has a video, embedded below.
There’s more from The Independent.
Meanwhile, the WSJ has a story putting the accident into perspective:
Two Chinese nationals were hospitalized Monday afternoon after a Thai Airways International PCL THAI.TH +7.69% airliner skidded off the runway on landing at Bangkok’s international airport, in the flag carrier’s most serious mishap in over a decade.
And:
Thai Airways said the A330 aircraft in April underwent a comprehensive maintenance check, which occurs once every five years. It also said the captain in command of the Sunday flight had over 14 years of flying experience. Hours after the incident, Thai Airways applied black paint on parts of the jet to cover the airline name, logo, and registration number, a move the airline said was done according to international practices following an accident.
Indeed, as I Tweeted earlier:
Painting over Thai Airways logo? Airlines do it more than you’d think: http://t.co/MCsleDhe0H http://t.co/7ak6aMqsgC cc @RichardBarrow
— Newley Purnell (@newley) September 9, 2013
Update 2:
Regarding the painting over of logos on the aircraft of @ThaiAirways flight 679. This is not in line with @staralliance crisis (1/2)
— Star Alliance (@staralliance) September 9, 2013
guidelines. It would appear that the official quoted was misinformed. (2/2)
— Star Alliance (@staralliance) September 9, 2013
And:
1. Thai Airways statement just now: “Though THAI generally practices the de-identifying of an aircraft after an incident (or accident)…”
— Newley Purnell (@newley) September 9, 2013
2. Thai Air statement contd: “…the Company also clarifies that it is NOT a Star Alliance policy or procedure to de-identify aircraft.”
— Newley Purnell (@newley) September 9, 2013