Airline: Thailand's first budget carriers

Bangkok: One-Two-Go, the budget airline whose jet crashed on the Thai resort isle of Phuket yesterday was one of the first low-cost operators to spring up in the southeast Asian tourist haven.

One-Two-Go and its parent company, Orient Thai, operate a fleet of six Boeing 747s and seven McDonnell Douglas MD-82s, according to the airline's website.

Bangkok-based One-Two-Go opened in December 2003, and operates 168 flights a week, carrying 150,000 passengers a month domestically as well as to Hong Kong and South Korea.

Demand for cheap air travel from locals and foreigners alike has spurred massive expansion in the budget airline sector in the region.

Despite a number of crashes and safety scares involving budget operators, especially in Indonesia, analysts say there is no hard evidence to suggest they are more accident-prone than full-service carriers.

In March, the European Union lifted a ban on Thailand's Phuket Air after the company addressed Brussels' safety concerns.

One-to-Go chairman Udom Tantiprasongchai said the MD-82 that crashed at Phuket was being flown by an experienced, foreign pilot. The planes were leased from abroad and were 100 per cent insured, he told Thailand's ITV news channel.

Other small operators in Thailand include Nok Air, Thai Air Asia, Phuket Air and Bangkok Airways.

Phuket: Thailand's popular resort destination

- Phuket is the biggest island in Thailand, located 860 kilometres south of Bangkok in the Andaman Sea. It is often dubbed "Pearl of the Andaman", or "Pearl of the south", on account of its rich natural resources.

- Formerly known as Tha Lang, the most popular resort island in Thailand gets around 3 million visitors each year, and accounts for a third of the country's $8 billion (Dh29.3 billion) in tourism receipts.

- With an area of approximately 543 square kilometres, Phuket attracts tourists mostly from November to February, with its clear blue sky, sea water and palm-fringed beaches.

- Thailand's domestic airlines operate several flights daily between Bangkok and Phuket. The island is connected to the mainland by a bridge.