South Korea has told low-cost carriers to prioritize safety over profits after last month's fatal Jeju Air plane crash in South Korea in a bid to bolster confidence in the country's aviation industry.
In a meeting with South Korea's nine budget airlines on Thursday, the country's transport ministry demanded they take measures to reduce flight hours, improve pilot training and increase the number of maintenance staff. The ministry has stopped giving official targets, instead leaving it up to the airlines to come up with their own proposals.
Jeju Air said it will reduce the average daily flight time of its planes from 14 hours per day to 12.8 hours per day, according to the ministry. The carrier will also add 41 technicians to bring its total to 350.
The Jeju Air Boeing 737-800 crashed into a concrete wall at Muan International Airport, killing 179 people, the worst aviation disaster in South Korea. And since then it has become the deadliest in the world Lion Air Flight 610 in 2018All 189 people on board died. Travel agencies say people have been canceling trips for weeks since then, according to local media.
While there is no evidence that poor maintenance or pilot error caused the crash, investigators will review all aspects of the flight. This includes airplanes date of repair and a bird strike knocked out its engines and electrical systems.
Airlines that ignore security will be hijacked by travelers and disappear, the ministry said in a statement. He said that the flight certificates of carriers that do not comply with safety standards will be suspended.
Despite a setback when travel collapsed during the pandemic, low-cost carriers have grown rapidly over the past two decades. But they face cost pressure as they compete to lower ticket prices.
Some of the government's proposed safety measures may have a limited impact on safety, but could help in ways such as reducing the workload of pilots and other workers and reducing the risk of fatigue that leads to human error, aviation experts said.
“There's not much you can do in an hour other than basic safety checks,” said Kwon Bo Hun, a professor of aviation safety management at Far Eastern University, referring to Jeju Air's decision to reduce flight hours.
Officials said the crashed plane was about 15 years old and had no history of accidents. Older aircraft are considered safe, but often requires more maintenance.
Government requirements may also increase costs for airlines competing to offer low-cost travel. According to experts, for example, increasing the number of maintenance crews will increase operating costs for airlines operating in the service model without problems, which will lead to higher ticket prices.
On Wednesday, the government announced its plans overhaul of runway infrastructure This includes expanding safety zones and building locators, antenna arrays to help pilots land, and more flexible steel instead of concrete.
One particular subject of investigations into the accident is the concrete wall containing the antenna array at Muan Airport. Flight 7C2216 crashed into a concrete wall at high speed and exploded, killing all but two passengers and crew.
A security check A few weeks ago, the Ministry of Transport revealed that seven South Korean airports and several of the country's airlines had violated existing safety standards. Violations included failing to perform safety checks within the required time frame after takeoff and inadequately changing filters in the plane's hydraulic systems after overheating.