Move Follows 'Nut Rage' Incident Aboard Korean Air Flight In 2014

An incident last year in which the daughter of the head of Korean Air blew up over a bag of nuts has prompted that government to change its laws about dealing with "unruly passengers" on airline flights.

You'll probably recall the December, 2014 incident in which Cho Hyun-Ah berated a flight attendant after she was served macadamia nuts in a bag rather than on a plate. At the time, Cho was a VP for Korean Air, and was aboard a flight that had just left the gate at JFK en route to Seoul, South Korea. She forced the plane back to the gate to remove the offending FA.

For her actions, she served 5 months in prison and was forced to resign her position at the airline. An appeals court eventually ruled that she did not violate any aviation safety laws.

But now the law has been changed, according to The Guardian newspaper. Under the amended law, a passenger who "disturbs" the pilot during a flight can face five years in prison and a fine of 50 million won, or about $41,000. The previous fine was about $4,000 (5 million won) and no jail time.

In a press statement, the South Korean transport ministry said that the amended law "reflects mounting public demand for enhanced aviation safety and the prevention of unruly behaviour during flight following the Korean Air nut rage incident.”

(Image from file)

FMI: http://english.molit.go.kr