Son Chang-wan was in office while works were undertaken at Muan International Airport. Last month, a plane crashed into a concrete barrier there, killing 179 people.

South Korean authorities are still investigating the cause of the recent air disaster at Muan International Airport. Some are blaming a concrete embankment at the end of the airport runway, which will now be removed.

SEOUL: South Korean authorities said on Wednesday (Jan 22) they will change the concrete barriers used for navigation at some airports across the country after the Jeju Air cra

South Korea's transport ministry said on Wednesday that it would remove the concrete embankment installed at Muan International Airport following last month's Jeju Air crash, its deadliest domestic air disaster.

South Korea said it planned to improve the structures housing the antennas that guide landings at its airports this year after December's fatal crash of a Jeju Air plane, which skidded off the runway and burst into flames after hitting such a structure.

The boxes holding the flight data and cockpit voice recorders for the crashed flight that left 179 people dead stopped recording four minutes before the disaster.

Seven airports will also have their runway safety areas adapted following a review of all South Korea's airports that was carried out after the crash - the deadliest in the country's history. The Jeju Air flight was bringing passengers home from Thailand after Christmas when it made an emergency landing at Muan airport and exploded after slamming into a concrete barrier at the end of the runway.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said it had ordered plans for localizers to be placed underground or replaced with lightweight metal structures within the year

The deadliest plane crash in South Korea's history is triggering a change at the country's airports. The BBC reports the concrete barriers that contain navigation systems at seven airports will be altered in the wake of the crash,