(Photo: AFP)SEOUL - A concrete barrier blamed for the deadly South Korean jet crash that killed 179 people in December 2024 had been built to cut costs, the state auditor said on Tuesday. A government-commissioned simulation released earlier this year found that all passengers would have survived had the concrete structure supporting the localisers — a navigation antenna system that helps aircraft during landing — not been present. The Board of Audit and Inspection said in a report that the concrete structure had been built by the transport ministry as it “sought to reduce costs”. The report said the terrain where the runway and runway-end safety area were constructed at Muan airport was sloping. Instead of flattening the area — which would have required significant earthworks and higher expenditure — officials chose to install the localiser on a concrete structure elevated above the runway, the audit report said.

Source: Bangkok Post March 10, 2026 13:36 UTC