[Aju News DB]
Korean Air promised Tuesday to revise its safety manual and allow flight attendants to use force and tasers more actively in a policy change prompted by a recent in-flight commotion that became a butt of international ridicule.
The company was criticized for using passive tactics and restraint when a 34-year-old man identified as Im Beom-joon (phonetic) went on a drunken rampage aboard a Korean Air flight from Vietnam to South Korea.
Korean Air said it would revise its safety manual to react more actively against in-flight violence. Currently, tasers are used only when there is a serious threat to the life of passengers or flight attendants.
In Incheon west of Seoul, police sought a court-issued warrant Tuesday to arrest Im on charges of violent acts that caused injuries and of violating a law on aviation safety.
Before being held for questioning Monday, Im said he could not bring back his memory due to an alcohol-induced blackout. He is accused of beating and spitting at cabin attendants and passengers.
The latest disturbance gained international attention after American rock star Richard Marx and his wife uploaded critical posts and pictures on their Facebook and Instagram.
Marx, who was on his way back to his home in Los Angeles via Incheon, was praised for playing a role in controlling the drunken passenger. The 53-year-old rock ballad legend criticized how Korean Air's crew members were ill-prepared for such an incident.
Im faces a maximum prison term of five years under a revised aviation law prompted by the infamous "nut rage" case involving Cho Hyun-ah, the daughter of Korean Air's founding family, in late 2014.
The fine for drunken passengers who injure other passengers doubled to 10 million won (8,299 US dollars) in an effort to curb disruptive in-flight cases which have been on the rise.
reporter
Park Sae-jin
swatchsjp@ajunews.com