Due to Thailand's extremely strange fascination with scary looking
dolls - Thai Smile Airways is now allowing travellers to book tickets
for their Luk Thep / Child Angel dolls.The Luk Thep dolls have grown in popularity, trumping Barbie by far, since local celebrities began claiming the dolls had the power to bring good fortune to their owners, reports CNN.
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The Luk Thep doll is between 10 - 22 inches and is thought to carry children's spirits. It is common for Thai people, young and old, to adopt them as their own. Luk Thep owners take the dolls to a Thai healer and undergo a ceremony - where the spirit of a child is implanted into the doll.
Thai Smile, a subsidiary of Thailand's flag carrier Thai Airways, told its staff to provide doll lovers with this service. Luckily, Thai Smile knows how to look after all of it's passengers and says "dolls have to be buckled up like human passengers and will be served snacks and drinks" reports CNN.
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Luk Thep may not sit in exit rows and if you forget to buy them a ticket or forget the ticket at home, your Luk Thep face the severe penalty of being treated like hand luggage and must be stowed during take-offs and landings.
If you want to buy your Luk Thep a ticket you have to do so under your own name and place it in that seat.
Some restaurants are also cashing in on the trend - Neta Grill in Bangkok is now offering meals for the dolls at child rates, explaining the restaurant welcomes "all worshippers", reports BBC.
Hiding anything?
The Thailand Department of Civil Aviation (DCA) is now discussing the issue with aviation agencies to create secure policies and security measures.
Some airlines have commented that while they warn customers that the price of seats for the Luk Thep is very expensive, they cannot stop customers from buying them.
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Many are fearing the dolls may be used as drug vessels with a friendly exterior, after one was found carrying 200 tablets of yaba - a Thai methamphetamine drug.
Here is a picture of the Luk Thep who was caught smuggling drugs at Chiang Mai Airport.
luk thep 1
The 'adoption' fee costs anything from R1 500 - R6 000.
Some dolly haters are not as excited about the new lucky charms. Some hotels are going as far as possible to ban Luk Thep from their properties.
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