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Former Korean Air Executive Indicted Over ‘Nut Rage’ Incident
Former Executive of Korean Air Is Indicted in ‘Nut Rage’ Episode
(about 17 hours later)
SEOUL, South Korea — A former Korean Air executive who flew into a rage over the way she was served nuts in a first-class cabin, forcing a plane back to the gate to kick out a flight attendant, was indicted on Wednesday on criminal charges of violating aviation safety regulations and conspiring to hush up the affair.
SEOUL, South Korea — A former Korean Air executive who flew into a rage over the way she was served nuts in a first-class cabin, forcing a plane back to the gate at Kennedy Airport to kick out a flight attendant, was indicted on Wednesday on criminal charges of violating aviation safety regulations and conspiring to hush up the episode.
The executive, Cho Hyun-ah, the eldest child of Korean Air’s chairman, Cho Yang-ho, was fired from her position as a vice president of the airline and put behind bars last month after her actions on Dec. 5 triggered a national uproar and turned her family and Korean Air into objects of international ridicule. Her fall from grace was the latest blow to South Korea’s powerful family-controlled business empires, known as chaebol, which have been plagued by corruption scandals, tax evasion charges and sibling feuds over assets.
The executive, Cho Hyun-ah, the eldest child of Korean Air’s chairman, Cho Yang-ho, was fired from her position as a vice president of the airline and jailed last month after her actions on Dec. 5 set off a national uproar and turned her family and Korean Air into objects of international ridicule. Her fall from grace was the latest blow to South Korea’s powerful family-controlled business empires, known as chaebol, which have been plagued by corruption scandals, tax evasion charges and sibling feuds over assets.
Prosecutors said on Wednesday that Ms. Cho, 40, verbally and physically abused first-class flight attendants on a Korean Air flight bound for South Korea from New York after one of them served her macadamia nuts in an unopened bag, instead of on a silvery plate. During a 20-minute harangue, she ordered the plane to return to the gate to kick out Park Chang-jin, the head of the cabin crew, they said.
Prosecutors said Wednesday that Ms. Cho, 40, verbally and physically abused first-class flight attendants on a Korean Air flight bound for South Korea from New York after one of them served her macadamia nuts in an unopened bag, instead of on a plate. During a 20-minute harangue, she ordered the plane to return to the gate to kick out Park Chang-jin, the head of the cabin crew, they said.
“The unprecedented turnaround of the plane undermined the credibility of Korean Air and the national image of South Korea,” the prosecutors said in a statement.
“The unprecedented turnaround of the plane undermined the credibility of Korean Air and the national image of South Korea,” the prosecutors said in a statement.
The “nut rage” incident, as Ms. Cho’s case became known, has drawn extensive media attention in South Korea, where many people considered it to be far more than a tantrum by the spoiled daughter of a billionaire tycoon. They believed that the way Korean Air and the government Transport Ministry handled the incident confirmed some of their worst misgivings about the chaebol and their relations with government regulators.
The “nut rage” incident, as Ms. Cho’s case became known, drew extensive attention in South Korea, where many people considered it to be far more than a tantrum by the spoiled daughter of a tycoon. They believed that the way Korean Air and the Transport Ministry had handled the episode confirmed some of their worst misgivings about the chaebol and their relations with government regulators.
Over the decades since the Korean War, a handful of chaebol families have built conglomerates like Samsung and Hyundai that dominate the South Korean economy. But they have also developed a reputation for running their corporate empires like military dictators and for maintaining collusive ties with regulators. Critics say the “owner” families have brooked no challenge or contradiction and have surrounded themselves with kowtowing managers.
Since the Korean War, a handful of chaebol families have built conglomerates like Samsung and Hyundai that dominate the South Korean economy. But they have also developed a reputation for running their corporate empires like dictators and for maintaining collusive ties with regulators.
Indicted along with Ms. Cho on Wednesday was a Korean Air executive, identified by the family name Yeo, who was accused of coercing Korean Air officials to delete an email on what happened on Dec. 5 and to lie to government investigators to protect Ms. Cho. Prosecutors also indicted a Transport Ministry official on charges of illegally briefing Mr. Yeo on the confidential details of the official inquiry.
Indicted along with Ms. Cho on Wednesday was a Korean Air executive, identified by the family name Yeo, who was accused of coercing airline officials to delete an email on what had happened on Dec. 5 and lie to government investigators to protect Ms. Cho. Prosecutors also indicted a Transport Ministry official on charges of illegally briefing Mr. Yeo on the confidential details of the official inquiry.
Prosecutors also said they were investigating allegations that ministry officials have regularly asked Korean Air to upgrade their seats when traveling abroad — a practice civic groups have said amounts to bribery.
Mr. Park, the attendant who was kicked off the plane, said in news interviews that Ms. Cho had made him and a junior flight attendant who had served the nuts apologize on their knees. He also said that Korean Air officials had pressured him to give Transport Ministry investigators a less incriminating version of what had happened.
On Wednesday, the prosecutors said Ms. Cho had ordered Korean Air officials to hush up the scandal. “What did I do wrong?” she was quoted as asking Mr. Yeo.
The ministry later said that its inquiry had been faulty and unfair, and it disciplined eight investigators. Ms. Cho, for her part, has repeatedly apologized for her actions.
After the episode was leaked to the news media last month, Korean Air first shifted the blame onto Mr. Park and other members of the cabin crew. It accused them of lacking training and said it was “natural” for Ms. Cho to discipline the attendants because she was a vice president in charge of passenger services.
Around the same time, Ms. Cho’s younger sister, Cho Hyun-min — a Korean Air executive in charge of corporate communications — sent a text message to Ms. Cho, vowing “revenge” against unspecified enemies of the family, according to investigators. (She later apologized for her “immature” behavior.)
Meanwhile, the Transport Ministry played down the scandal by announcing that it could find no evidence that Ms. Cho had used physical violence or that Korean Air had tried to cover up the incident.
But Mr. Park, the attendant who was kicked off the plane, described damning details during news interviews. He said that Ms. Cho had made him and a junior flight attendant who had served the nuts apologize on their knees and that she had also hit his hand with a plastic folder of in-flight service manuals and pushed the other flight attendant against a wall. He also said that Korean Air officials had pressured him to give Transport Ministry investigators a less incriminating version of what had happened on Dec. 5, adding that the investigators appeared to cooperate with Korean Air’s attempt to minimize the event by letting its executives monitor his questioning and even ask questions themselves.
The ministry later said that its investigation had been faulty and unfair, and it disciplined eight investigators. Ms. Cho, for her part, has repeatedly apologized for her actions.
