Thai rocket festival nearly brings down plane -- report

Thai rocket festival nearly brings down plane -- report

Bangkok: A rocket launched during a traditional Thai festival designed to appease the rain-gods nearly brought down a passenger plane, reports said. ``A home-made rocket fired by farmers in the north-east to bring down rain nearly brought down an aircraft instead,'' the Nation daily said. ``The rocket, meant to appease the rain-god, narrowly missed a small passenger-plane belonging to privately-owned PB Air as the plane was landing'' at an airport in the north-eastern town of Roi Et, the Nation said, quoting provincial aviation officials. The pilot was extremely startled to see the rocket speeding by as he was coming in to land at Roi Et, but managed to avoid the projectile, the officials said. Each year at the beginning of the Thai rainy season, which starts late June or July, villagers in the traditionally-arid north-east gather for festivals and fire large, home-made rockets into the sky.