South Korea Excludes Former, Current Gov Officials From Jeju Air Crash Probe For Fairness

SEOUL, Jan 7 (Bernama-Yonhap) – South Korea’s government has excluded former and current senior officials from participating in an investigation into the recent Jeju Air plane crash to avoid conflicts of interest and ensure a fair and objective probe, the transport minister said Tuesday, Yonhap News Agency reported.

Transport Minister Park Sang-woo announced the plan to exclude such figures from the Aviation and Railway Accident Investigation Board, which is tasked with investigating the fatal Dec. 29 crash that claimed 179 lives.

"To clearly determine the cause of the accident, we will continue the investigation in compliance with international norms and domestic laws to ensure fairness," Park said during a press briefing held at the government complex in the central city of Sejong.

Park explained that Chang Man-hee, chairman of the board and a former ministry official, and Joo Jong-wan, head of the ministry's aviation policy office serving as a standing board member, have been excluded from all board activities.

Furthermore, Park said data transcription of the cockpit voice recorder from the crashed B737-800 aircraft has been completed and that the separate flight data recorder from the plane was transported to the United States on Monday for analysis.

Regarding the controversy surrounding the localiser structure at Muan International Airport, which has been identified as a factor that exacerbated the accident, Park said authorities are well aware of concerns and will swiftly improve the structures at airports with safety in mind.

-- BERNAMA-YONHAP