The closure of the runway at Muan International Airport due to the Jeju Air passenger plane disaster that occurred on the 29th of last month is expected to be prolonged. Some speculate that international flights may temporarily transfer to Gwangju Airport, but this seems realistically challenging.
According to the aviation industry on the 6th, there is no timeline for the normalization of operations at Muan Airport. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport stated that it would initially close the runway until the 1st of this month for accident recovery, which was later extended to the 7th. It has also been reported that the ministry is considering keeping the runway closed until the reinstallation of the localizer, identified as a major cause of the accident.
The localizer at Muan Airport is cited as a cause that exacerbated the accident damage as it was installed on a concrete mound. The detailed guidelines for managing aviation obstacles state that obstacles within the airport site must be mounted on fragile supports, but Muan Airport installed the localizer on top of a concrete mound with a concrete slab structure. The ministry noted that the relevant provisions do not apply to the localizer at Muan Airport, but indicated it would review changes to the structure based on future accident investigation results.
In addition to the localizer, there are numerous unresolved issues related to the accident investigation and assessment of other facilities, making the timeline for resuming airport operations uncertain. Recovery efforts for the accident victims are in the final stages, but the accident site is being preserved for investigation.
As the closure of Muan Airport drags on, airlines are unable to schedule flights. Jeju Air and Jin Air, which operate out of Muan Airport, have been unable to open reservation schedules for all their active routes. Jin Air is operating routes to Japan and Taiwan from Muan, while Jeju Air operates routes to Jeju, Japan, Taiwan, China, Thailand, and Malaysia from Muan.
There are speculations that if the airport closure continues for an extended period, its functions may once again transfer to Gwangju Airport, which operated international flights before the establishment of Muan Airport. Within Gwangju, there have been demands to revive international flights if military airport functions are not transferred to Muan. Gwangju Mayor Kang Ki-jeong noted last year, “If Muan continues to refuse the military airport transfer, Gwangju citizens will boldly choose another path” and added, “There is no time to delay. We hope Muan makes a swift decision.”
Gwangju had discussions with the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport last year to attract irregular international flights to Gwangju Airport for the transport of participants in the World Archery Championships but those plans fell through. It has also been reported that Gwangju explored options for attracting international flights on the Gwangju-Hawaii route. Gwangju Airport was upgraded to an international airport in 1995 and operated international flights until May 2008. Although it has now transferred its international airport operations and only domestic flights operate, there were 13 international flights before the opening of Muan Airport.
Industry expectations indicate that reviving international flights from Gwangju Airport is unlikely to be feasible. The establishment of Muan Airport was planned as a new “southwestern international airport” after an Asiana Airlines passenger plane (HL7229) crashed while landing en route from Gimpo to Mokpo. Although the merger process has been slow due to differences in positions among local governments, a merger with Gwangju Airport is also planned.
The area around Gwangju Airport is negative about the revival of international flights, as the airport is seen to hinder overall regional growth and development due to altitude restrictions. The procedures for reviving international flights are also complicated. A Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport official stated, “The recovery of bodies is not even complete, and we need to assess the damage to the airport facilities, so there is still a long way to go for the normalization of Muan Airport.” He further stated, “Even if we try to temporarily transfer international flights to Gwangju Airport, it has to be designated as an international airport, and quarantine and customs facilities also need to be reinstalled, so it is not an easily decided matter.”