Ministry of Land insists Muan airport localizer meets regulations

[Anchor]

However, the government maintains that there is no problem.

The location of the localizer at Muan Airport is said to comply with regulations.

Is that really the case? Reporter Lee Seung-cheol investigated.

[Report]

"Facilities within the runway safety area must be breakable," and "the localizer at Muan Airport was installed on a concrete structure," these facts are not disputed by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.

The issue lies in the interpretation of the location.

The Ministry has repeatedly stated that the localizer at Muan Airport is outside the runway safety area, and therefore, there is no regulatory issue.

[Ju Jong-wan/Director of Aviation Policy, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport/Yesterday: "(The localizer) has been confirmed to be installed outside the runway safety area."]

[Ju Jong-wan/Director of Aviation Policy, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport/Today: "Since it was outside the range, various regulations do not apply...."]

They cited the 'Aviation Obstacle Guidelines' as a basis, but the 'Installation Standards for Takeoff and Landing Areas,' which is a binding notice from the Ministry, tells a different story.

It explicitly states that the runway safety area must be extended to include the localizer.

According to this regulation, the localizer would also fall within the safety area, meaning that a concrete structure cannot be used.

Regulations from international organizations also support this view.

[Jeon Seung-jun/Professor, Department of Aviation Operations, Cheongju University: "According to the ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization) documents, the runway safety area is defined to include the area where the localizer is installed."]

Then, the Ministry suddenly brought up the issue of interpretation of terms.

They argued that it needs to be clarified whether "up to the localizer" refers to the localizer itself or just up to its front.

[Kim Hong-rak/Airport Policy Officer, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport/Today: "In English, is it including (the localizer) or up to (excluding the localizer)? This is where the two of you already have differing opinions."]

As the question of whether the violation of facility regulations contributed to the accident has emerged as a key issue, the Ministry is only escalating the controversy over word interpretation instead of providing answers.

This is KBS News, Lee Seung-cheol.