On 13 August I was boarding the flight T5 648 Bangkok-Ashgabat in the Bangkok International Airport (BIA). Passing the last security check point, which was about 50 meters from the Gate 33 where my plane was boarding, I was asked by an operator if I had a pen-knife in my photo bag. I confirmed that and showed her my Victorinox SwissChamp pen-knife, which I always carried in my photo bag along with two photo cameras, lens and other accessories.
She took the knife and said that it was not allowed to take it on board, it would be detained and sent to me by mail. I expressed my doubt that the knife could reach me by mail and also said that the knife was never a problem before. For example, when I flew a transatlantic flight from Frankfurt to the USA, the German airport security officers asked me to show the knife, I did that and they allowed me to take it on board.
Our discussion took some time and the second female officer approached us. She was, apparently, the supervisor of the first, as the first girl handed her my knife and left us. After a brief conversation, the second girl kindly offered me that she would pass my knife to the crew members of my plane and I would safely get it upon arrival to Ashgabat. I agreed, so she wrote my name and the numbers of my flight and boarding gate on the reverse side of my airport tax payment receipt, attached it to the knife and went away.
When I and my friend approached the Gate 33, I saw a representative of the Turkmenistan Airlines there and warned him about the situation. He promised to pass the knife to the crew as soon as it would be delivered to him. Boarding the plane, I also warned the crew on the situation. They promised me that everything would be OK. Unfortunately, they were wrong. When we landed in Ashgabat, it appeared that my knife was not passed to the plane crew.
Later, I wrote several e-mail messages to the BIA and to the Governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand Ms. Juthamas Siriwan, requesting them to reconcile the matter by passing my knife to the representative of the Turkmenistan Airlines, but in vain. Nobody bothered to reply.
Marat
Ashgabat
Turkmenistan
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