German court releases Thai plane

A German court on Wednesday ordered the release of an aircraft flown by the Crown Prince impounded in Germany pending a 20-million-euro (Bt845 million) bank guarantee.

The Boeing 737 was seized at Munich airport in Munich, Germany last week in a long-running dispute between Thailand and a German construction firm.

However the court in Landshut near Munich today allowed the plane, valued at around 20 million euros, to be released following assurances that it was the private property of the Crown Prince and not that of the Thai state.

The seizure of the aircraft prompted a visit by Thai Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya on Friday to Germany, calling the incident a "huge mistake" and meeting foreign undersecretary Cornelia Pieper to discuss the matter.

The German government has said it regretted the incident but stressed that it was powerless to act, insisting it was a matter for the courts.