Regarding the suspicion that Jeju Air concealed the cause of engine failure during the 2022 Kansai Airport diversion incident, the police made a 'no charges' decision last year.
The Anti-Corruption Crime Investigation Unit of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency announced on the 8th that after investigating the case of obstruction of official duties by deception involving Jeju Air, they judged that there was insufficient evidence to prove the charges and decided not to prosecute in January last year.
Previously, anonymous office worker community Blind and others raised suspicions that Jeju Air concealed the cause of the diversion at Kansai Airport in Osaka, Japan, in November 2022 as a 'bird strike.'
It was alleged that Jeju Air repeatedly repaired the engine to cut costs, which led to engine failure, but reported it as a bird strike to avoid disadvantages related to traffic rights.
The aircraft that diverted at the time was reported to be the same model (B737-800) as the Muan Jeju Air crash aircraft, but a different plane.
The police launched a pre-indictment investigation in June 2023. They executed a search warrant on Jeju Air once, booked two related individuals, and conducted witness investigations on 11 people.
However, the police explained that they found insufficient evidence to consider that Jeju Air obstructed the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport’s official duties and thus made a 'no charges' decision.
Kim I-bae, CEO of Jeju Air, stated at a press briefing on the 31st of last month, "There are traces of a bird strike, but it was ultimately determined to be a manufacturing defect. There was even a police investigation into whether there was concealment, but the result was no charges."
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