The Star (Malaysia)
SEOUL: After days of holding on to hope, we are now faced with the grim news that all 22 passengers aboard the Progress Multi Transportation Air plane that crashed en route to Sihanoukville from Siem Reap may have died.
Thirteen Koreans were aboard the flight, including groups of families and friends who had joined a four-day tour of the historical sights in Cambodia. Cambodia in recent years has become one of the top holiday destinations for Koreans, attracted by the opportunity to take in legendary historical monuments at a relatively low price.
The average price of a group tour similar to one that the ill-fated tourists were on goes for 600,000 won (RM2,251) per person. Included in the price are round trip plane tickets, local transfers, hotel accommodation and meals. Such deals are a bargain compared to domestic holidays.
However, such bargains often come at the price of safety. The PMT airliner that crashed was an old Russian-made AN 24. The airline has a poor safety record, having had at least three accidents or emergencies in the past two years. Clearly, this is an airline that you take at your own risk.
In the push for more business, out-bound tour operators will cut corners to slash prices. If the total cost of a tour package is less than the normal round trip plane fare, one should question how such prices are possible. It is the responsibility of the consumers to find out.
Tour operators should also make sure that their customers’ safety is not compromised. Substandard accommodation and transportation should not be offered in an effort to lure more customers. If they need to, tour operators must adjust their prices.
In the meantime, the government has added PMT Air to a list of six other airlines whose planes are being checked for safety through July 6.
The six other airlines which received low ratings on safety, on-time departures and arrivals and flight cancellations include Royal Khmer Airlines, Garuda Indonesia, Iran Air, Sakhalinsk Airlines, Vladivosk Air, and Dalavia Far East Airways.
Hopefully, such a move will go towards improving the safety of travellers.
Thirteen Koreans were aboard the flight, including groups of families and friends who had joined a four-day tour of the historical sights in Cambodia. Cambodia in recent years has become one of the top holiday destinations for Koreans, attracted by the opportunity to take in legendary historical monuments at a relatively low price.
The average price of a group tour similar to one that the ill-fated tourists were on goes for 600,000 won (RM2,251) per person. Included in the price are round trip plane tickets, local transfers, hotel accommodation and meals. Such deals are a bargain compared to domestic holidays.
However, such bargains often come at the price of safety. The PMT airliner that crashed was an old Russian-made AN 24. The airline has a poor safety record, having had at least three accidents or emergencies in the past two years. Clearly, this is an airline that you take at your own risk.
In the push for more business, out-bound tour operators will cut corners to slash prices. If the total cost of a tour package is less than the normal round trip plane fare, one should question how such prices are possible. It is the responsibility of the consumers to find out.
Tour operators should also make sure that their customers’ safety is not compromised. Substandard accommodation and transportation should not be offered in an effort to lure more customers. If they need to, tour operators must adjust their prices.
In the meantime, the government has added PMT Air to a list of six other airlines whose planes are being checked for safety through July 6.
The six other airlines which received low ratings on safety, on-time departures and arrivals and flight cancellations include Royal Khmer Airlines, Garuda Indonesia, Iran Air, Sakhalinsk Airlines, Vladivosk Air, and Dalavia Far East Airways.
Hopefully, such a move will go towards improving the safety of travellers.
