Excess luggage tab $6,000

BANGKOK: Thai Airways has charged its former executive chairman $6,000 for excess luggage that he failed to pay for on a flight in an incident which led to his resignation, the flag carrier said yesterday.

Wallop Bhukkanasut quit the airline earlier this month after being accused of exploiting his position by transporting 30 pieces of luggage weighing 398 kg (876 pounds) from Japan to Bangkok in November.

The airline launched an investigation and documents showed Wallop had traveled with his wife and a friend on first-class tickets, which would only have permitted them to carry luggage weighing 170 kilos for free.