Jo Won-tae on the charter flight to Wuhan: "We cannot stand by... Doing our best not to interfere"

'Self-quarantine leave for Jeonsepyun crew' and other labor demands "All prepared"
Regarding Wuhan pneumonia impact on aviation industry "Measures being prepared... Not the time for hasty decisions"

[Asia Economy Incheon Airport=Reporter Yoo Je-hoon] Cho Won-tae, Chairman of Hanjin Group, said on the 30th regarding his decision to accompany the charter flight dispatched for Korean residents staying in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China, "How can I just stand by when employees are risking their lives to go (to Wuhan)?" and added, "I have no role, but I will do my best not to interfere."

Before boarding the Wuhan-bound charter flight (KE9881) at 8:20 p.m. at Incheon International Airport Terminal 2, Chairman Cho told reporters, "Seeing that employees volunteered (to support the charter flight), I could not just sit in the office," expressing his thoughts.

Earlier, the government decided to arrange a charter flight to transport Korean residents staying in Wuhan. Korean Air, which operates the existing Incheon-Wuhan route, was assigned to operate the flight. Among the approximately 30 crew members boarding the charter flight, a significant number were volunteers, including labor union leaders.

Accordingly, Chairman Cho had been pushing to board the charter flight. Although the flight schedule was canceled in the morning, making his boarding uncertain for a time, the final decision to depart that evening was made, and he boarded the charter flight along with the crew.

A Korean Air official explained, "Chairman Cho is boarding as the person responsible for the operating airline," adding, "It is to express gratitude for the crew's voluntary boarding and to lead by example by participating in this difficult mission."

Regarding demands from some labor unions, including the Korean Air Employees Solidarity Branch, for leave for self-quarantine of crew members boarding the charter flight and compensation measures for those infected during work, Chairman Cho said, "It is difficult to comment, but all measures have been prepared."

Furthermore, about Korean Air's future role, Chairman Cho said, "Just before boarding, I briefly spoke with Minister of Health and Welfare Park Neung-hoo and Second Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Lee Tae-ho, and told them, 'We will respond to the nation's call in any way,'" adding, "If there is anything we can do, we will do it."

Meanwhile, regarding concerns that the aviation industry might rapidly deteriorate due to the novel coronavirus infection (Wuhan pneumonia) situation, Chairman Cho said, "It is a sensitive issue, and although we are considering countermeasures, it does not seem to be the stage to make hasty decisions," and added, "For now, we should watch the situation and hope it calms down."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.