What is it?

Metal debris were scattered over an area in Si Sa Ket on Dec 22, 2011 following mysterious loud bangs. The army reckons the loud bangs were from an unidentified mid-air explosion. (Bangkok Post photo)

Another view of the mysterious object.

Local residents were understandably concerned when unidentified objects began falling from the sky

 23/12/11
Bangkok Post

If you live in an area that has recently been hit by artillery shells, you are understandably a bit panicky when mysterious large objects start falling out of the sky.

Thus, when residents of Kantharalak district in Si Sa Ket, the target of Cambodian shelling earlier this year, heard a loud bang, followed by reports of falling metallic debris, they assumed fighting had again broken out.

Shortly after the explosions were heard, a piece of metal about 1 metre long and half a metre wide was found in a field at Phumsarol Witthaya School, said Chokchai Saikaeo, president of tambon Sao Thongchai administration organisation.

The same school was hit by artillery fire during the fighting between Thai and Cambodian forces earlier this year and local parents were soon on the scene to take their children home.

Prayuth denies aircraft shot down on border [-Thailand's insistance on "satellite" story is whacky at best!!!]

December 24, 2011
The Nation

Army chief General Prayuth Chan-ocha yesterday dismissed rumours that Thai troops had shot down an aircraft in the border province of Si Sa Ket.

"No, there has been no shooting," Prayuth said, adding that officials were examining the unidentified objects found in Ban Phum Saron on Thursday.

"At this point, I cannot confirm what they are exactly. But they look like parts of a satellite or a fuel cylinder," the Army chief said. He added that similar objects had been found in the same area in 2003.

The Army chief said he wondered why the parts, if they really came from a satellite, had not burned up while tumbling down to Earth. He reiterated that no espionage aircraft had been found hovering over Thailand.

Police claim debris from Thai aircraft

Friday, 23 December 2011
Phak Seangly
The Phnom Penh Post

Authorities found debris from what they claimed was an unmanned Thai surveillance plane soon after what sounded like explosions above the Preah Vihear temple sent tourists rushing for cover yesterday morning.

A day after discussions drew Cambodia and Thailand closer to withdrawing troops and ending the Preah Vihear border dispute, Choam Ksan district deputy police chief Mey Chhai Yan said authorities had found parts of an “unmanned surveillance plane” they claimed Thai forces had blown up after it had taken pictures of the temple.

“We do not know what the aim of taking the pictures was,” he said. Some parts had fallen around the temple, but had not caused damage.

Villager Sao Yath, a 57-year-old from Choam Ksan district, said he had heard 10 explosions and saw smoke about 10:45am.

Metal pieces found in Preah Vihear: Suspected spy plane parts

The authority was inspecting the metal pieces suspected to be part of a spy plane exploded mid-air. The pieces were found in Preah Vihear province on 16 August 2011 (Photo: Hang Savyouth, RFA)

16 August 2011
By Hang Savyouth
Radio Free Asia
Translated from Khmer by Soy
Click here to read the article in Khmer

Joint authority force in Preah Vihear province have discovered several metal pieces made from aluminum spread on the ground. The parts could be pieces a small plane flying over Kulen district, located about 40 km southwest of Preah Vihear city.

The discovery was made after 3 loud explosions were heard in the air on Tuesday morning.

Research teams from the joint force including soldiers, military police and CMAC employees, indicated that several metal pieces measuring 4 to 7-cm thick, as well as an electrical box were found near a villager’s house and also in several locations in the forest located in Kulen district, south of Sroyong commune, after several consecutive explosion sounds were heard. The sound created panic among villagers located about 40-km around the area.

On Tuesday 16 August, Sor Thavy, the deputy district governor of Preah Vihear province, said that several explosion sounds were heard at about 6AM, then the authority started the search immediately after villagers from Kulen district reported that they saw metal pieces raining down from the sky near their houses.

Thai spy plane trespassed into Cambodian airspace

19 May 2010
Everyday.com.kh
Translated from Khmer by Socheata

Chum Sib, district governor of Sampov Loon, Battambang province, told the Koh Santepheap newspaper over the phone in the morning of 18 May that a Thai spy plane flew along the borderline, but 5 km inside Cambodian airspace in the evening of 14 May. Chum Sib said that this Thai spy plane flew along the borderline but inside Cambodian airspace from Malay district, Banteay Meanchey province, up to Sampov Loon and Phnom Preuk districts, then it crossed back into Thai airspace near Phnom Ka-ngak which is facing Phnom Barang Thleak in Phnom Preuk district, Battambang province. Chum Sib said that he reported this incident already. General Uk Khnuot, the deputy commander for the Battambang province military region said that he is not sure about this trespassing of airspace by the Thai plane yet. He said that if there was Cambodian airspace trespassing, it wouldn’t escape the attention of his force. General Por Vannak, the commander of the Battambang military police, said that there was indeed trespass into Cambodian airspace, but the plane flew at high altitude.

Thai plane violated Cambodian air space

10 August 2009
Everyday.com.kh
Translated from Khmer by Socheata

Thai plane violated Cambodian airspace three times on 08 August, in spite of the fact that Thai troops have agreed to remove the barbed wires and concrete fence installed in Phnom Trop zone. General Chhum Socheat, spokesman of the minister of Defense, told The Rasmei Kampuchea on Saturday morning that a Thai spy plane circled around the border in Preah Vihear temple 8 times and on 3 occasions, the plane flew above the fourth temple (Koborak No. 4). He added that “When we asked them, they said that their plane was flying to protect their delegates who were visiting their troops inside Wat Keo Sekha Kiri Svarak Pagoda.” However, Chhum Socheat indicated also that Thai troops removed the barbed wires installed in front of their trenches in Phnom Trop already on Saturday morning. He explained that the 350-m long barbed wires were all removed at 10AM on Saturday. Thai troops also build 150-m long by 2-m high concrete fence, and they promised to remove them by Sunday.

Military: Thai spy plane flies into Cambodian airspace

PHNOM PENH, Sept. 25 (Xinhua) -- Cambodian military officials claimed that Thai military jets flew into Cambodian airspace Monday over two key flashpoints along the border, national media reported Thursday.

"Our troops have been standing by about 200 meters from Ta Krabey temple and this aircraft flew beyond them by a few hundred meters and circled around," Ho Bunthy, deputy commander of Border Military Unit 402, was quoted by the Phnom Penh Post as saying.

Cambodian troops were not given permission to fire, he added.

He called it a surprisingly brazen act given current tension over the border demarcation between the two countries and said he was given no orders on how to respond in the future after reporting the incident to his commander.

The aerial border breach was reportedly repeated around the same time over Ta Moan Thom temple, also without retaliatory shots fired, the newspaper said.

"I think the Thais used this aircraft to survey our troops standing along the border," said Neak Vong, deputy commander of Brigade 42, which is stationed outside Ta Moan Thom temple.

Neang Phat, secretary of state at the Cambodian Defense Ministry, told the Post he would "raise the issue" with Thai officials during negotiations scheduled for next week, but would not elaborate on the authority of military officials along the border to defend the sovereignty of the Kingdom's skies.

The border dispute between the two neighbors erupted after Cambodia's arrest of three Thai nationalist protesters on July 15,whom authorities allege crossed illegally into Cambodia close to the disputed temple site.

Since then, Thailand and Cambodia have been building up their forces near the temple and tensions have escalated, spreading to other temple sites along the border.

Debris from alleged exploded airplane showering Preah Vihear province

Thursday, September 20, 2007
Everyday.com.kh
Translated from Khmer by Heng Soy

A loud explosion was heard in the sky at 11:20 AM on 19 September, in Preah Vihear province, causing panic among the local population. The Rasmei Kampuchea reported that after the explosion sound, a piece of 20-kilogram debris, assumed to be from a plane, fell on Ta Mey village, Kantuot commune, Choam Khsan district. Other source reported that after the explosion sound, several debris also fell in the area of Anlong Veng dike. The explosion sound, and the alleged airplane debris, led the people living in Preah Vihear to suspect that the plane which exploded in mid-air could be a Thai spy plane. Cambodian aviation expert said that the debris could come from a remote controlled airplane, and that it could be a training plane which was shot down on purpose. The source indicated that the authority is collecting the alleged plane debris to send them for testing in the near future.