A Korean Air flight bound for Taiwan was compelled to return to Incheon airport near Seoul following a sudden depressurization incident aboard a Boeing 737 Max 8 aircraft, the transport ministry confirmed on Tuesday.
According to the ministry, 19 out of the 133 passengers on board the flight on Saturday were hospitalized for ear pain and nosebleeds, though none sustained serious injuries.
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Both the airline and the ministry stated that investigations are ongoing to determine the cause of the incident. As a precautionary measure, the affected aircraft has been grounded, and South Korea’s 11 airlines have been instructed to inspect the pressurization systems of their combined fleet of 400 aircraft.
The depressurization incident occurred approximately 50 minutes after the flight departed.
In a separate incident, Malaysia Airlines reported that one of its flights returning to Kuala Lumpur from Bangkok on Monday had to turn back due to a pressurization issue on an Airbus A-330 aircraft.
The Boeing 737 Max series has faced scrutiny following fatal crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia in 2018 and 2019 respectively, prompting global grounding by regulators including the FAA for over 18 months. Recent concerns resurfaced after a panel blew out on a 737 Max during an Alaska Airlines flight in January, resulting in no serious injuries.
