Why Flight Safety in South Korea Lagged Behind Its Economic Boom
By 1999, South Korea was already well on its way to joining the
world's most advanced economies. Companies like Samsung and
Hyundai were fast becoming household names and, at a little less
than $10,000, the country's GDP per capita -- having taken a hit
during the Asian financial crisis in 1997 -- was not far off
from those of poorer Western European countries such as Malta
and Greece. Overall life expectancy in South Korea was soaring.
But the country's aviation safety record was abysmal. Its
national carrier, Korean Air, had a reputation as one of the
worst in the business -- so bad that U.S. Department of Defense
personnel were banned from taking its flights. The airline
ranked among the worst in fatalities in the 1990s, with 311 over
the course of the decade compared to American's 171 and United's
147. Three of Korean Air's partner airlines -- Delta, Air
France, and Air Canada - refused to continue booking their
passengers on its flights.