Posts falsely credit outgoing Thai leader for steam train relaunch

"This is the Thai train that Uncle Prayut brought back to life again, stunning foreigners for its uniqueness and beauty. It looks so magical," reads the Thai-language caption of a video posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, on August 10, 2023.

The video, which appears to have originally been shared on a TikTok account on August 2, shows a steam train pulling another steam train along a track (archived link).

Thai-language text overlaid on the video reads: "Foreigners are stunned by the fact that Thai people brought these old trains back into service. Japanese and German people delightedly say 'wow'."

The post, which was shared by an account with more than 13,000 followers, is accompanied by hashtags crediting the outgoing prime minister for the train's return, including #WorkofUnclePrayut and #Prayutsteam.

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Screenshot of the misleading post, taken Aug. 17, 2023

The same footage was shared with similar claims on Facebook here, here and here, while a similar clip was shared on TikTok here.

The claims circulated as Thailand was locked in political deadlock following an election in May that was seen as a national rejection of Prayut, a former army chief who came to power in a 2014 coup.

Thai lawmakers eventually approved tycoon Srettha Thavisin as the kingdom's new prime minister on August 22.

His Pheu Thai party came second in the May election, but stepped in to form a government after the reformist Move Forward Party (MFP) -- which won the most seats -- saw its leader denied the prime minister spot by conservative, pro-military forces.

The steam trains, however, returned to service before Prayut came to power in 2014.

Pacific steam locomotives

The two trains that appear in the video are marked "824" and "850" in Arabic numerals, which are commonly used in Thailand.

A keyword search on Google found the numbers match a pair of Pacific steam locomotives used in Thailand.

The kingdom imported 30 of the steam locomotives from Japan following World War II, according to a journal published by the State Railway of Thailand (SRT) in 2021 (archived link).

The SRT journal says the two trains went into service for the first time in August 1949 and March 1950. They underwent major renovations in 2012 -- during former prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra's term in office, two years before Prayut came to power.

They returned to service on December 5, 2012 -- Father's Day in Thailand -- giving rides from Bangkok to Ayutthaya province.

The two locomotives are stored at Thonburi Locomotive Depot in Bangkok.

The assistant chief of the depot, Supakit Pipatchinda, told AFP on August 17 that the locomotives were repaired and restored and "have been running since 2012".

The trains are only used for “special occasions” and run just six times a year on various public holidays, Supakit said, adding that their first trip after being renovated was on December 5, 2012.

Richard Barrow, who runs the Thai Train Guide blog, also told AFP the locomotives were returned to service before Prayut seized power (archived link).

"For sure they were running well before his tenure," Barrow replied in a message on August 17. "I was riding the steam train excursion well before the Prayut era. I also remember they were refurbished in 2012."

A keyword search on Google led to a photo on the specialist website rotfaithai.com and a video on YouTube of the locomotives from December 5, 2012 (archived links here and here).

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Screenshot of a photo of Pacific steam locomotives 824 and 850 that was captured on December 5, 2012 and posted on rotfaithai.com

Thai-language news websites Post Today, Manager, and Voice TV also reported that a ceremony was planned for December 5, 2012 to relaunch the locomotives, and they would run from Bangkok to Ayutthaya province (archived links here, here and here).

AFP has previously debunked other posts that falsely credited Prayut's government for building Thailand's longest bridge.