Jeju Air crash victims' families sue South Korean minister, airline boss

The families of victims from South Korea's worst-ever plane crash filed a criminal complaint against 15 people, including a government minister and the airline's CEO, their lawyers told AFP on Wednesday.

The Boeing 737-800 was flying from Thailand to South Korea's southwest on Dec.29 carrying 181 passengers and crew when it belly-landed at Muan airport and exploded in a fireball after slamming into a concrete barrier.

Killing 179 people, the incident was the worst-ever aviation disaster on South Korean soil.

"A criminal complaint was filed with the Jeonnam Provincial Police," Jung Da-eun, one of the lawyers representing the victims' families, told AFP.

In a statement, the legal representative of the families said that the incident was "not a mere accident but a serious public disaster caused by negligent management of preventable risks."

Citing violations including failure to ensure safety, breach of duty of care, and negligence, Jung said the complaint was filed against the country's minister of land, infrastructure and transport, as well as "the CEO of Korea Airports Corporation and the CEO of Jeju Air."

The families' legal team stated that suspicions and unexplained issues still surround the accident, citing, for example, "the decision to attempt a go-around immediately after a bird strike" and "the appropriateness of the control tower's response."

At the moment of the accident, the pilot warned of a bird strike before pulling out of a first landing attempt.
The plane crashed on its second attempt when the landing gear did not emerge.

"We cannot help but feel deep anger and despair over the lack of any progress, four months after the tragedy," said Kim Da-hye, a family member, in a statement.

"Having made the difficult decision to file a criminal complaint, representing the desperate hopes of the bereaved families, we will not give up and will continue our march toward the truth."

South Korean and American investigators are still probing the cause of the disaster, with a bird strike, faulty landing gear and the runway barrier among the possible issues.

The Jeju plane exploded in flames when it collided with a concrete embankment during its landing, prompting questions about why that type of barricade was in place at the end of the runway.

South Korea has since ordered overhauls of similar structures at multiple airports nationwide.

Agence France-Presse