President Lee Jae-myung on the first anniversary of the "Muan Airport Jeju Air passenger jet disaster" on the 29th said, "As the president, who has the duty to protect the lives and safety of the people, I offer my deepest apology." He also said that to help the bereaved families return to daily life, "we will carry out comprehensive support covering psychology, medical care, legal matters, and livelihoods without omission and on a sustained basis."
Before the memorial service held that morning at Muan International Airport, Lee released a consular eulogy and said, "The precious lives of 179 people who boarded the plane to return to ordinary life after finishing overseas trips with their beloved families, or after completing business trips and work abroad, turned into tragedy in an instant," pledging comprehensive government support for the bereaved families. He also posted a memorial message with this content on Facebook.
Lee said, "What we need now is not formal promises or empty words, but tangible change and action," adding, "The government will actively support strengthening the independence and expertise of the Aviation and Railway Accident Investigation Board and do its utmost to determine the cause of the passenger jet disaster."
Police are known to be conducting an investigation after securing materials analyzing the causes of the disaster, including an analysis of the height and material of the localizer (azimuth facility) at Muan Airport. Whether there were comprehensive flaws in the airport construction process is also a core issue. Investigators are also working to determine whether "collision prevention measures" were sufficiently taken in consideration of a migratory bird habitat near the airport at the time of the accident, and whether there were defects in the aircraft, such as the engine.
Lee said, "The 12.29 passenger jet disaster starkly revealed the structural problems and limits of our society," adding, "I believe that ensuring such a tragedy never repeats is the very least we can do to honor the victims." He continued, "We will make sure to build a country where those who must be held accountable are clearly held accountable, where even small risks are neither neglected nor overlooked, and where everyone is safe."