"37 Years, 150 Earth Orbits"... Retirement Flight of an Eastar Air Captain

13,833 Flight Hours Since 1982

Captain Heo Ok-man of Eastar Jet is landing at Gimpo International Airport after completing his final flight on the 21st. (Photo by Eastar Jet)

Captain Heo Ok-man, who has been with Eastar Jet since its founding, is retiring after 37 years of flying.

Eastar Jet announced that Captain Heo will retire after completing flight ZE204 from Jeju, arriving at Gimpo International Airport around 10 a.m. on the 21st.

Captain Heo has flown for 12,833 hours over 37 years, equivalent to circling the Earth 150 times. He operated 5,051 flights solely with Eastar Jet, carrying approximately 900,000 passengers.

Heo began his flying career in 1982 as a fighter pilot and joined Eastar Jet as a flight crew member when the airline was established in 2007. Demonstrating excellent piloting skills and maintaining a decades-long record of safe, accident-free flights, he served as the General Control Room Manager from 2016 to 2021 and concurrently as the Head of Safety and Security from 2021.

After retiring as a flight crew member, Captain Heo will continue working as the Head of Safety and Security at Eastar Jet, overseeing safe flight operations and overall aviation security. Heo shared his thoughts, saying, "Although I feel a great sense of regret thinking that I can no longer fly, it has been an honor to serve our customers safely without any accidents for 37 years. While I am letting go of the control yoke, I will continue to support Eastar Jet’s safe operations from the ground."

Jo Joong-seok, CEO of Eastar Jet (right), is congratulating Captain Heo Ok-man (left) on his retirement and expressing his gratitude on the 21st. (Photo by Eastar Jet)