In 1911 aeroplanes were used in military manoeuvres for the first time, but it was the commercial benefits air travel offered, in ending Siam’s relative isolation and enhancing communications with the outside world. When in March 1924 the British formed Imperial Airways (the forerunner of BOAC and British Airways), ringing in the age of passenger air transport, Siam (Thailand) for example already offered four aerodromes. The English Short brothers developed flight boats for the Africa and Asia traffic. The flight boats offered every luxury. 16 passengers, all seated at elegantly laid tables facing each other, were served from lavish buffets, gazing through panoramic windows with curtains drawn. Windows could be opened and passengers were strictly advised not to throw anything out. An advertising campaign by Tom Purvis for Imperial Airways was a huge success. For a long time, even airships were seriously considered for long haul travel. When airship R101 crashed on its flight to India in 1930, this issue was shelved for the time being. Imperial Airways, by the way, was the first company in the world to hire air hostesses. The fact that all the ladies were trained nurses sheds light on the difficulties expected along the route, doesn’t it? ‘Travel from London to Bangkok in only nine Days!’ the Aerial Transport Co of Siam proudly announced in 1930. ‘America now only fifteen days distant, Japan six days, Hong Kong two days.’ In 1939, the Boeing Stratoliner took this leisure to even dizzier heights, with pressurized cabins and air conditioning and seating for 33 passengers. For the first time, a passenger plane could rise above bad weather. ******** While a steamer from Europe to Indonesia would have never come near Bangkok, the 1932 KLM schedule from Amsterdam to Batavia in a Fokker F-12 or F-18 was very different. The flight path (duration of each flight determined by hours of daylight, sandstorms, monsoons, etc.) were: Amsterdam – Marseille – Rome – Brindisi – Athens – Mersa Matruh – Cairo – Gaza – Baghdad – Bushir – Djask – Karachi – Jodhpur – Allahabad – Calcutta – Akyab – Rangoon – Bangkok – Alor Star – Medan – Palembang – Batavia. En route stopovers at night, in hotels or guesthouses, were part of the schedule and were included in the ticket. The last stop before Bangkok was Rangoon. After flying over dense jungle, the mountains gave way to flat irrigated paddy rice fields and soon Don Muang, Bangkok’s airport, was reached.