One year after Jeju Air disaster, questions remain unanswered

For bereaved families, grief is compounded by the search for truth

For Ko Jae-seoung, the year since his parents died in a Jeju Air plane crash has been marked less by mourning than by waiting for answers, accountability and an explanation the government has yet to provide.

Ko, 43, lost both of his parents in the Dec. 29, 2024, crash at Muan International Airport in South Jeolla Province. They were returning from a vacation in Thailand.

The passenger aircraft caught fire during an emergency landing after skidding along the runway and colliding with a concrete structure near its end. Before landing, a possible bird strike involving the engine had been reported. The crash killed 179 of the 181 people on board.

One year on, Ko and other bereaved families say the investigation has failed to meet basic standards of transparency and fairness.

“Before the first anniversary of the accident, which falls on Monday, I hope the ministry offers an apology,” Ko told The Korea Herald. “Not a vague statement, but a clear acknowledgment of what is already evident.”

“I believe such an apology could be the starting point for a credible effort to determine the cause of the accident,” he said.

The probe has been conducted under the authority of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transportation, which also oversees aviation safe