South Korea’s Transport Minister plans to resign over deadly Jeju Air crash
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South Korea’s Transport Minister Park Sang-woo said he will try to find the right timing to resign.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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SEJONG, South Korea - South Korea’s Transport Minister said on Dec 7 that he intends to step down to take responsibility for the deadly crash of a Boeing jet operated by Jeju Air on Dec 29, 2024.
Jeju Air 7C2216, which departed the Thai capital of Bangkok for Muan in south-western South Korea, belly-landed and overshot the regional airport’s runway, exploding into flames after hitting an embankment.
“I feel heavy responsibility for this disaster,” Mr Park Sang-woo told a press briefing.
He said he will try to find the right timing to resign after addressing the current situation.
The Transport Ministry also said it will swiftly improve the safety of airport landing systems that experts said contributed to the catastrophic accident that killed 179 people on board
Air safety experts have said the embankment, designed to prop up the “localiser” antenna used to guide landings in poor visibility, was too rigid and too close to the end of the runway.
Deputy Transport Minister for Civil Aviation Joo Jong-wan acknowledged that safety measures were not sufficient when building the embankment, but said they were done in line with regulations in Korea and overseas.
The police are investigating how the embankment was constructed, he added. The police last week raided Jeju Air and the operator of Muan International Airport
