The Dec. 29 Muan Airport Jeju Air passenger plane disaster bereaved families council released the decision document that concluded Muan International Airport's localizer was installed in violation of relevant laws.
The council said, "This acknowledges by a state agency itself that the disaster was not an unavoidable freak accident but a 'predicted man-made disaster' caused by the state's systemic negligence and safety insensitivity," and demanded an official government apology.
According to the council on the 23rd, the previous day the Anti-Corruption & Civil Rights Commission (ACRC) sided with the bereaved families on their complaint against the Minister of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport over the "improper installation of the localizer at Muan International Airport." It came about four months after the complaint was filed.
The Anti-Corruption & Civil Rights Commission (ACRC) resolved to "recommend corrective action to the respondent (the Minister of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport) to establish a runway end safety area at (Muan International Airport), including the localizer, and to reinstall the localizer installed on a concrete embankment with frangible materials in accordance with the 'standards for airport, airfield facilities and landing area installation' and the 'airport safety operation standards.'"
The Anti-Corruption & Civil Rights Commission (ACRC) found that, under applicable rules, air navigation facilities installed in a runway end safety area must be made of frangible materials; however, the localizer at Muan International Airport was installed on an embankment based on concrete partition walls and a deck slab, meaning the embankment itself is not a structure that absorbs or cushions impact in an aircraft collision but rather corresponds to a fixed rigid structure that amplifies collision energy.
The council said, "We welcome the ACRC decision," adding, "It officially confirms that the structure the aircraft struck after veering off the runway was not a mere obstacle but a 'death trap' illegally installed and managed in direct violation of safety standards prescribed by law."
The council also demanded that the government and the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport humbly accept the ACRC decision and, taking responsibility for the illegal facility's installation and management, make a formal apology to the public before the first anniversary of the disaster on the 29th.
The council further argued: ▲ prosecutors and police should investigate without sanctuary all those responsible who were involved in the design, construction, approval, and management of the illegal facility ▲ the Aviation and Railway Accident Investigation Board should investigate without suspicion all causes of the accident, including facility defects (the embankment), aircraft defects, birds, and air traffic control ▲ the National Assembly and the government should separate the Aviation and Railway Accident Investigation Board from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, transfer it under the Prime Minister, and enact effective enforcement decrees to ensure the three principles of independence, expertise, and democracy.
On Dec. 29 last year at Muan International Airport, a Jeju Air plane overran the runway while attempting a belly landing and struck a concrete embankment. The crash killed 179 people.