Watchdog Begins Deliberations on Korean Air's Alleged Obstruction of Probe
The FTC examiner recommended criminal complaints against Korean Air and three employees and rejected requests to ease merger-related seat-capacity rules.
- On Thursday, South Korea's Fair Trade Commission began deliberation proceedings on three cases involving Korean Air Lines, including alleged obstruction of an investigation into the carrier's takeover of Asiana Airlines Inc.
- Examiners recommended filing criminal complaints against Korean Air and three employees, alleging they deleted work-related computer files and emails during a February inspection at the carrier's Seoul headquarters.
- Separately, the airline requested to ease seat capacity requirements on 40 routes, citing volatility from the Middle East war, and sought a reduction to 70 percent for services connecting Cheongju and Jeju.
- The FTC examiner recommended rejecting these requests, finding no evidence of route contraction and concluding there were insufficient grounds to determine an unavoidable change in circumstances.
- Korean Air stated it will review the report and clarify that the investigation was not obstructed, while the commission will finalize decisions at a plenary session after hearing defenses.
10 Articles
10 Articles
The Korea Times
Watchdog begins deliberations on Korean Air's alleged obstruction of probe
Korea's antitrust watchdog said Thursday it has begun deliberation proceedings on three cases involving Korean Air Lines Co., including the carrier's alleged obstruction of an investigation. The Fair Trade Commission (FTC) said its examiner recommended filing criminal complaints against Korean Air and three of its employees for allegedly obstructing an investigation linked to the carrier's takeover of Asiana Airlines Inc. According to the examin…
The Fair Trade Commission rejected Korean Air's request to ease conditions for maintaining route seats and filed charges against three employees on charges of obstructing an investigation. This measure, aimed at enforcing the conditions for the approval of the business combination, demonstrates the Commission's principled response to create a fair competitive environment within the aviation market.
(Seoul/Sejong = Yonhap News) Reporters Jang Hana and Song Jeong-eun = An investigator from the Fair Trade Commission [regarding] the 'obligation to maintain available seats' imposed as a condition for the merger between Korean Air and Asiana Airlines...
The Fair Trade Commission has commenced full-scale deliberation procedures regarding requests from airlines, including Korean Air and Asiana Airlines, to ease seat retention obligations. While submitting an opinion that all such requests should be rejected, an investigator from the KFTC referred Korean Air and its executives and employees to the prosecution for deleting emails and other materials during the investigation process.
The Fair Trade Commission reported Korean Air and its employees to the prosecution for intentionally deleting evidence while checking compliance with the corrective order regarding the merger of Korean Air and Asiana Airlines.
Korean Air is set to face adjudication by the Fair Trade Commission (FTC) on charges including deleting relevant data to obstruct an investigation. The FTC Secretariat announced that it submitted an examination report to the Commission regarding the obstruction of the investigation by Korean Air and its employees, and forwarded the report to Korean Air on the 10th. Consequently, deliberation proceedings have commenced, and the Commission will ma…
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