Gruelling trip for Britons stranded in Thailand

Two hundred Britons set off from Bangkok today to board the first British Airways rescue flight from Thailand.

But even though Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi Airport is now open nine days after anti-government protesters took control, they will have to make a gruelling 33-hour journey before they touch down in London.

The passengers checked in for flight BA10 at desks set up at the city's Shangri-La hotel and then boarded buses taking them on a 10-hour journey south to Phuket.

From there they will join 72 others and board a Boeing 777, which will fly them first to Chennai and on to London, arriving shortly after 2.10pm tomorrow.

Geoffrey Hyde, 54, from Eastbourne, was worried about his job.

"I have taken unpaid leave and was due back at work this week," he said. "There has been a lot of confusion. The airline told us we could not go home until 10 December"

Both British Airways and the Foreign Office have been criticised for not coming to the aid of the Britons. Other airlines, including Holland's KLM, Italy's Alitalia and Air France, have already flown their nationals out of Thailand. But BA refused to fly in.

"This was due to safety and security considerations", a spokesman said.