 |
| (사진=대한항공) |
[Alpha Biz=(Chicago) Reporter Paul Lee] Two pistol bullets were found on a plane departing from Incheon International Airport to Manila, the Philippines, on the 10th, prompting 218 passengers to evacuate.
In the process, a Korean Air crew received live ammunition from a passenger but did not report it to the police or airport authorities, considering it as metal garbage, so the report was delayed.
Passengers on Korean Air flight KE621, which was scheduled to depart for Manila, Philippines, at around 7:45 a.m. on the 10th, found two 9㎜ bullets under the 53G seats and delivered them to the crew.
However, the flight attendant of Korean Air did not report to the police even after receiving the live ammunition. Because I mistook it as garbage.
The crew in question closed the aircraft door with two live ammunition on the cockpit, a bridge-shaped passage connecting the airport and the aircraft. After being reported to have no problems, the pilot moved the marine aircraft to the runway.
It was the attendant in charge of the boarding bridge who found the live ammunition. At around 8:02 a.m. on the same day, he found two live ammunition that were placed on the steering board of the boarding bridge and reported them to the Incheon International Airport Counter-terrorism Situation Room (TCC). The aircraft moved to the runway for takeoff and returned to the terminal.
Some point out that due to Korean Air's immature response, it has missed the golden time of the investigation into the import of live ammunition as it has been delayed about an hour since the passenger's initial discovery.
The police, who were dispatched after receiving a report, checked all seats and toilets of the aircraft in question, and all 230 people, including 12 crew members and 218 passengers, left for the Philippines in about four hours after receiving security checks.
Two live bullets were produced in the Czech Republic with a 9㎜ caliber.
The police confirmed that the aircraft departed from Danang, Vietnam, and arrived at Incheon International Airport the previous day (9th). It was also found that the aircraft did not conduct a 'second search' (in-flight search) because it was not in the air.
Korean Air said that after the aircraft arrived at Incheon International Airport, it carried out in-flight cleaning at 6 a.m. on the 10th, and passengers were on board at 7 a.m.
"The crew received two live bullets from a passenger and misunderstood them as 'metal trash' and did not report them to the police," a Korean Air official said. "No real bullets were found at the time of cleaning the aircraft."
"As a result of conducting security checks on aircraft and passengers, we have confirmed that there is nothing unusual, including allegations of terrorism," the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said in a press release. "If insufficient in-flight security checks or security search failures are confirmed, we will dispose of them in accordance with the regulations."
AlphaBIZ 폴리(hoondork1977@alphabiz.co.kr)
