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The men were arrested Wednesday at their village near Suvarnabhumi Airport, a day after three lanterns were spotted floating near the airport, said police Col. Dusit Marengsaeng. The pair denied the charges against them, which carry a five-year jail term, and were released on bail.
The airport's control tower spotted the lanterns south of the airport Tuesday evening, said control tower official Warawut Rapipat.
"We could not tell how high the lanterns were but we alerted airplanes to what we had seen," Warawut said.
Residents who live near the airport, which opened in 2006, have complained about having to endure constant noise and exhaust from planes taking off and landing.
The lantern launching followed a Tuesday meeting between residents affected by airport noise and representatives from the Transport Ministry and Airports of Thailand, the Bangkok Post reported.
The government has promised to compensate the residents who suffer most from the noise by building new houses and helping to relocate families to quieter neighborhoods.
But residents say the compensation is not adequate and only helps a small portion of those affected. Angry residents had threatened in the past to float balloons near the airport to block airplanes but had never followed through.