Korean Air plane to depart for US to bring home detained Koreans
This photo shows a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention facility in Folkston, Ga., U.S., where workers from the Hyundai Motor–LG Energy Solution battery plant construction site are being held following an immigration crackdown, Tuesday. Yonhap
A chartered Korean Air plane will depart for the United States this week to bring home hundreds of Korean workers detained in a sweeping immigration raid at a Hyundai Motor Group-LG Energy Solution Ltd. battery plant construction site in Georgia, industry sources said Tuesday.
According to the sources, Korean Air is preparing to deploy a Boeing 747-8i aircraft as early as Wednesday from Incheon International Airport to Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.
The aircraft, which has a total of 368 seats, will be able to accommodate the more than 300 Koreans who were taken into custody.
The charter plane will travel empty to the U.S. and is expected to depart Atlanta late Wednesday (local time) at the earliest, carrying the released workers back to Incheon.
The Koreans will be transported from the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention facility in Folkston, Georgia, located about 428 kilometers from Atlanta.
The return flight was initially considered to depart from Jacksonville International Airport in Florida, about a 50-minute drive from the detention facility, but the plan was scrapped due to difficulties of operating large aircraft at the airport. Atlanta was instead chosen as the final departure point.
Industry sources estimated the round-trip charter operation would cost around 1 billion won ($7.21 million), with LG Energy Solution planning to cover the costs.
The crackdown took place Thursday at a construction site for an electric vehicle (EV) battery plant being built by a Hyundai Motor Group-LG Energy Solution joint venture in Bryan County, near Savannah, Georgia.
The immigration raid at the site resulted in the arrest of 475 people, including the Korean workers. ICE said those arrested were found to be working illegally in the U.S., with many of them on short-term or recreational visas that prohibit them from working.
Korea has been seeking to bring the Korean workers back home, with them voluntarily leaving the U.S. rather than facing deportation. U.S. immigration authorities were known to have initially offered two options — immediate deportation and restrictions on their entry into the U.S. for five years or a monthslong trial under detention.
The incident has caused serious concerns among Korean companies, with many casting doubts over whether the U.S. remains a reliable destination for Korean investments, reportedly forcing many companies here to reassess risks and the broader political climate for doing business in America.