[Anchor]
In light of the Jeju Air passenger plane disaster, the government has investigated and released the status of landing guidance facilities, known as localizers, across all airports in the country.
It was found that eight localizer facilities in six airports nationwide, including not only Muan Airport but also Gimhae and Jeju, are similar to the concrete mound structures identified as exacerbating factors in the disaster.
This is a report by Lee Ji-eun.
[Report]
There is a localizer installed at the end of the runway at Muan Airport.
Below it is a 2-meter-high mound covered with earth and made of concrete.
This solid localizer facility, identified as a factor that intensified the disaster, was also confirmed at other domestic airports.
Upon inspecting 13 airports nationwide, excluding Muan Airport, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport identified an additional eight localizers constructed in this form at six locations including Gwangju, Gimhae, and Jeju Airport.
Each of the airports in Gwangju, Yeosu, and Pohang Gyeongju had one concrete mound similar to that at Muan Airport, while Gimhae and Sacheon Airports had two concrete structures each under 1 meter in height.
Jeju Airport had a solid structure shaped like the letter H made of steel.
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport reports that these localizers, protruding above the ground, pose a high risk of collision with landing planes speeding down the runway.
[Kim Kwang-il / Professor of Aviation Operations at Shilla University: “If possible, concrete structures should be designed not to affect aircraft by being placed below ground level, and the poles should be made of materials or structures that are easy to break to mitigate damage.”]
The locations where these facilities were found were all outside the safety zones at the ends of runways.
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport had previously maintained that localizers outside the safety zone did not need to be made of breakable materials, asserting that there was no problem. However, due to this accident, they plan to revise the related regulations.
The Ministry plans to complete measures such as burying the problem-causing localizers underground by the end of this year.
This is Lee Ji-eun reporting for KBS News.
Video editing by Cha Jeong-nam / Graphics by Ko Seok-hoon
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