Flight Suspension

An Asiana Airlines Boeing 777-200ER climbs upwards from Sydney Airport in January 2007. (Photo by YSSYguy via Wikimedia Commons)
An Asiana Airlines Boeing 777-200ER climbs upwards from Sydney Airport in January 2007. (Photo by YSSYguy via Wikimedia Commons)

 

Asiana Airlines received a 45-day suspension of all flights to San Francisco for its landing accident at that city's airport in July of last year. The suspension will become effective in March 2015.

“In view of the human and property damage, the accident deserves a 90-day suspension, but we halved it allowing for the dedicated efforts that the flight attendants made at the accident site,” the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport explained. At that time, three people lost their lives and approximately 180 were injured due to the collision with the sea wall. The United States transport authorities investigated the incident for 11 months to reach the conclusion that the pilots were responsible. The business suspension is expected to lead to sales losses of approximately 15 billion won (US$13.5 million), not to mention a severely tainted brand image.

Both Asiana Airlines and Korean Air are objecting to the decision, but for different reasons. “The Ministry disregarded the opinions of experts like the IATA CEO that punitive measures such as flight suspension are of no help at all for safety enhancement,” Asiana said, adding, “Not only are we going to raise a formal objection, but also go to court if necessary.” Asiana had been subject to a seven-day suspension in its Saipan route in July for its violation of safety regulations. It had raised an objection, but the decision had not been overturned.

Korean Air, in the meantime, is calling equality into question. “In the past, the Ministry applied the maximum punishment to us through backdating but the penalty on Asiana has been limited to a minimum,” it said, continuing, “We cannot accept this unequal and inconsistent law enforcement.”

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