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Pilots sue airline boss after he claimed ‘flying is easier than driving a car’
Pilots at Korean Air are suing its chairman Cho Yang-Ho after he belittled their role in a post on social media.
Their union has filed a lawsuit to the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office for contempt and defamation.
In March, the chairman allegedly responded to a Korean Air pilot’s Facebook post in which the pilot had detailed the complex procedures required to become a qualified commercial pilot.
"What pilots have to do is just to decide to go or not to go …Flying is done by autopilot, and the flying is easier than driving a car. Only in case of an emergency do we need pilots. You (pilots) are exaggerating too much," Cho wrote, according to South Korea’s Yonhap News.
"Our honour was defamed and we were insulted by chairman Cho’s comment," the union said, according to the report.
Pilots of South Korean carriers Asia Airline, Jin Air, and Jeju Air have backed the lawsuit and are demanding the government takes action over the comments.
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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