On Dec. 29, 2024, police investigating the Jeju Air passenger plane disaster at Muan International Airport handed over seven officials of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport to prosecutors on charges including systematically concealing problems with the "localizer (azimuth facility)" to evade responsibility.
The Korean National Police Agency National Office of Investigation (NOI) special investigation team on the 12/29 passenger plane disaster (the special team) said on the 26th that it had sent all seven Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) officials booked on charges including falsifying official documents to the prosecution the previous day. They include four people who drafted or reviewed the press reference materials related to the localizer and three overall supervisors.
According to the special team's interim findings, as media reports pointing out problems with the localizer struck by the passenger plane continued, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) distributed press reference materials twice on Dec. 30 and 31, 2024, titled "The localizer at Muan Airport has been installed in accordance with relevant regulations."
The special team determined that although the localizer was installed in violation of relevant regulations, MOLIT officials intentionally omitted those regulations from the press reference materials and subsequently continued to craft response arguments about the illegality of the localizer to avoid responsibility.
Earlier, the special team conducted two rounds of searches and seizures of MOLIT offices and summoned those involved for questioning.
Including the seven MOLIT officials sent this time, the special team has booked 74 people and is currently investigating. It is focusing on charges including occupational negligence resulting in death or injury related to the cause of the accident.
The special team said, "We plan to respond strictly to those responsible in accordance with the law and principles," and added, "We expect that swift closure of the charges we are currently investigating and ensuring the completeness of the investigation will help, even a little, to dispel the suspicions raised so far."
Jeju Air flight 7C 2216, which departed from Bangkok, Thailand, collided with the localizer, built as a concrete mound, while attempting a belly landing at around 9:03 a.m. on Dec. 29, 2024, at Muan International Airport. The passenger plane exploded, killing 179 of the 181 people on board.