Ex-Thai PM Thaksin’s Singapore health trip goes awry after Seletar Airport curfew, lands in Dubai instead

Ex-Thai PM Thaksin’s Singapore health trip goes awry after Seletar Airport curfew, lands in Dubai instead



Former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra said delays at Bangkok Immigration meant his private jet missed Singapore’s Seletar Airport curfew, forcing an unscheduled landing in Dubai. — Reuters file pic

Saturday, 06 Sep 2025 11:50 AM MYT


KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 6 — What was meant to be a straightforward medical trip abroad for former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra turned into an unexpected detour, with his private jet landing in Dubai after missing Singapore’s airport hours.

The 76-year-old billionaire left Bangkok on Thursday night bound for Singapore, where he said he planned to see the doctor who had treated him during his years overseas.


But delays at Immigration, which he claimed lasted “almost two hours”, meant his aircraft missed Seletar Airport’s 10pm closing time yesterday.

“I intended to travel to Singapore to have a health check with the doctor who took care of me while I was abroad,” Thaksin wrote on X, formerly Twitter.


“Since I couldn’t land in Singapore, I decided to have the pilot change my plans to Dubai.”



Seletar Airport, which serves private jets, operates daily from 7am to 10pm.

Thaksin said the hold-up by Immigration officers — despite his insistence that he has “the same rights as any other Thai when it comes to travel” — left the plane unable to make the curfew.


Instead, the jet was rerouted to Dubai, where it circled for some time before being cleared to land at about 3am local time (7am Malaysian time).

In Dubai, Thaksin said he has access to doctors he has long consulted — an orthopaedic specialist and a pulmonary physician.

“I also have the opportunity to visit a friend in Dubai who I’ve not met in two years,” he added.

Despite the unexpected stopover, Thaksin insisted he would be back in Thailand “no later than September 8” to appear before the Supreme Court the following day for a hearing linked to his 2024 return and prison stay, when he served his sentence under medical supervision.

The sudden change of plans has sparked curiosity in Bangkok, coming against the backdrop of shifting political currents at home.

But for Thaksin, the diversion seems to have been more about health checks and a chance to catch up with an old friend than political manoeuvring.