‘Upsetting’: dancing Jeju Air crew stir backlash in South Korea
Social media users slam the airline for being tone-deaf, say it is too soon for lighthearted videos after the December crash that killed 179 people
A video of dancing crew members from South Korean airline Jeju Air has led to online criticisms of tone deafness, with social media users noting that it is too soon for such lighthearted clips after the crash that killed 179 people in December.
The 10-second video, titled “Feisty Flight Attendants” and uploaded on the airline’s official social media channel on July 11, showed three smiling crew members dancing, jumping and flashing V-signs. By Tuesday afternoon, it had garnered 2.2 million views and more than 200,000 likes.
However, not everybody was impressed. “How long has it been since the Muan accident?” one user asked, according to Seoul Economic Daily newspaper. “It’s only been half a year since the accident, so we need at least a year of mourning.”
On December 29, Jeju Air Flight 2216 issued a mayday before attempting to land on its belly at Muan Airport. It overran the runway at high speed and struck a concrete-reinforced berm, killing all but two of the 181 people on board. It was the deadliest air disaster on South Korean soil.
“It took a long time to recover the bodies and confirm their identities. The funerals were recent. Wouldn’t it be upsetting to see this if it were your family?” another user said, according to Korea JoongAng Daily newspaper.
Others, however, defended the crew members in the clip, saying they did nothing wrong. “Did the flight attendants or first officer cause the accident?” one asked.
“They look adorable dancing,” another wrote. “Just because there was an accident doesn’t mean they have to stay gloomy forever.”
As the criticism built up, Jeju Air responded through its official account. “All of our Jeju Air employees are always doing their best for the safety of our passengers,” it said. “Please continue to cheer our flight attendants on with warm comments so that they can continue to work actively.”
Founded in 2005, South Korea’s largest low-cost airline has been aggressively courting social media. It was named the top domestic carrier by online subscribers last August. Before the crash, between January and December last year, it saw record passenger numbers, Reuters reported, citing transport ministry data.
The video controversy comes just as a South Korea-led investigation into the crash said the pilots had mistakenly turned off the functioning left engine instead of the more damaged right after a bird strike just as the plane was about to land.
Families of those who died in the crash rejected the preliminary assessment, which was presented to them on Saturday, protesting that the report prematurely blamed the pilots, according to Reuters.
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The Jeju Air pilots’ union also called the report “misleading” by suggesting there was no problem with the left engine, given that traces of bird remains were found in both engines, and accused the investigators of trying to make the pilots “scapegoats”.
