Korean air executive delays plane over way cabin crew served nuts
A top executive at Korean Air has resigned amid mounting public criticism that she delayed a plane over how she was served macadamia nuts while travelling as a passenger in first-class.
Company officials said Chairman Cho Yang-ho has accepted the resignation of Cho Hyun-ah, his eldest daughter and a vice president.
She was under public fire following media revelations that a recent Korean Air flight from New York to South Korea returned to the gate because she ordered a senior crew member off the plane. Ms Cho was angered that she was served bagged macadamia nuts instead of nuts on a plate. Words: PA
The airline had apologised for inconveniencing passengers. But it also said it was "natural" for Ms Cho to fault crew's ignorance of procedures.
The airline told Korea Times that checking of quality of service was one of Ms Cho's jobs, as she is in charge of in-flight service for the carrier.
According to the BBC, transport authorities are investigating whether Ms Cho's actions infringed aviation law.
"Even though she is senior vice president at the company, she was a passenger at that time, so she had to behave and be treated as a passenger," a South Korea transport ministry official told reporters.
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