Korean Air under inspection following runway overrun

By Nam Hyun-woo

The transport ministry said Tuesday that it will conduct a special inspection of Korean Air after a Boeing 737 passenger jet belonging to the flag-carrier airline overran the runway at Japan’s Nigata Airport on Monday.

Korean Air Flight KE763 from Incheon International Airport to Nigata Airport strayed some 15 meters from the end of the runway after it landed at 7:40 p.m.

No casualties were reported and the aircraft suffered no damage. All 106 travelers on board disembarked safely, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.

The ministry announced that it will organize a special investigation team to probe the aircraft’s maintenance status, pilot adherence to standard operation procedures, and overall flight safety policy of Korean Air from Aug. 6.

If any major violation is found, the ministry will take disciplinary measures, the ministry said.

The strict response from the ministry is unusual following a non-fatal incident and came amid escalating national concerns over air travel safety after Asiana Airlines Flight 214 crashed at San Francisco Airport on July 7.

Kwak Yeong-pil, an official at the ministry said runway overruns are classified as a “serious incident” by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), of which Korea is a member.

The “serious incident” classification is a step below “accident” on the scale investigators use for categorizing occurrences. An accident involves fatalities or injuries as a result of aircraft failures, while non-casualty occurrences, such as overruns, are categorized as serious incidents.

“Serious incidents are usually followed by fact-finding level inspections only, but as national concerns over air travel have risen after the Asiana accident, the ministry will thoroughly check not only the facts regarding Monday’s incident, but also the entire aviation safety system of Korean Air,” said Kwak.

The Japanese government will oversee the on-site investigation into the overrun incident, but the Korean government will participate, if the Japanese counterpart requests, he added.