Thai King pilots own jet to Vietnam for state visit, Queen serves as co-pilot

Thai King Maha Vajiralongkorn piloted the royal aircraft for his state visit to Vietnam on Monday (Sept 14), with Queen Suthida serving as co-pilot.

A Facebook video posted by Thailand's foreign affairs office showed the 74-year-old king in the captain's seat and the 48-year-old queen beside him in the cockpit.

The Boeing 737-800 royal jet landed safely in Hanoi despite heavy rain.

The king, a career military officer who graduated from a military academy and served in the Royal Thai Armed Forces, is certified to fly the Northrop F-5, F-16 and Boeing 737-400, according to Hong Kong publication The Standard.

He served as an F-5E/F instructor pilot in 1994 and piloted a charity flight in 2012.

Queen Suthida was a flight attendant for Thai Airways and JALways before joining the royal military in 2010. 

She is qualified to fly large passenger aircraft and is training for solo flights in supersonic fighter jets, The Standard reported.

The royal couple arrived in Hanoi for a three-day state visit, accompanied by Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul and other senior Thai officials, The Star reported.

The visit marks the first state visit by a Thai king and queen to Vietnam since the two countries established diplomatic relations in 1976.

He previously visited Vietnam in 1992 and 1997 as crown prince.

Monday's visit comes as Thailand and Vietnam mark the 50th anniversary of their diplomatic relations and follows the upgrade of bilateral ties to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership last year.

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helmy.saat@asiaone.com