Korean Air chided for faulty maintenance

By Lee Hyo-sik Korean Air, the nation’s largest flagship carrier, has failed to keep its air fleet in good shape, forcing a number of its passenger airplanes to operate behind schedule and causing a great deal of inconvenience to passengers. Experts say that engine troubles and maintenance-related problems can occur occasionally for any airline in the world. But it is rare for the reputable carrier to grapple with multiple cases of faulty maintenance within a short period of time. Seven airplanes operated by Korean Air had to either make divert landings or depart behind schedule over the past three months, forcing thousands of air travelers to adjust their travel plans. According to the Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs, Monday, Korean Air’s Boeing 747 airplane, which had initially been scheduled to take off from Incheon International Airport on Nov. 15 for Chicago, departed 21 hours later than the original schedule because it was forced to stop operating after its fuel tank was found to have leaked oil. All 320 passengers had to transfer to another airplane. On Nov. 18, the airline’s Boeing 777 bound for Madrid was unable to start an engine, forcing 140 passengers to move to another aircraft. They arrived at the Spanish city 14 hours later than originally scheduled. Additionally, a Boeing 737 airplane bound for Niigata, Japan, on Dec. 4 was held up at Incheon International Airport for six hours because of faulty engine parts, while another plane bound for New York had to depart three hours later than scheduled due to a malfunctioning fuel gauge. ``These delays could be caused by engine defects and other faulty components. But we think the real problem is the inadequate maintenance of its fleet. It is embarrassing that a series of flight delays occurred involving the country’s main flagship carrier,’’ a ministry official said. The official then hinted at launching an extensive safety check on how Korean Air and other airlines conduct their aircraft maintenance. A Korean Air spokesman said it is unfortunate that some of the company’s airplanes have failed to operate normally in recent months, adding all airlines face similar problems all the time. ``We are one of the world’s top airline firms posting the lowest flight delay and cancelation rates. Despite the fact that we are currently meeting international standards, we will make greater efforts to further reduce the number of delayed and canceled flights, and improve customer service,’’ he said. These incidents came after the ministry’s extensive safety inspection of Korean Air airplanes in late October. This five-day inspection was launched to probe three incidents in which airplanes were forced to make emergency landings due to engine problems. On Sept. 3, Korean Air’s B737 airplane bound for Incheon from Russia’s Irkutsk was forced to land at Beijing International Airport as one of its engines failed. On Oct. 9, its B747 bound for San Francisco had to return to Incheon after takeoff, due to engine trouble. On Oct. 13, a B747 suffered unusual engine vibrations while landing at Anchorage International Airport.

leehs@koreatimes.co.kr