En gal verden, det er sikkert - Curt Lewis

Cabin Chief Denies Korean Pilot Alcohol - Gets Demoted

In an interesting turn of events, a cabin chief at Korean Air denied a captain access to alcohol during the flight. However, after reporting the incident, the cabin chief received a punishment in the form of a demotion. Here is the story.

Update on July 10, 2019: Korean Air provided the following statement to Simple Flying: "Regarding the case, we have found out that there was a miscommunication between the captain and the cabin crew. Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport of Korea is currently under investigation on this, and we are fully cooperating with them. "

A Korean Air cabin chief was demoted after preventing a captain from accessing alcohol during flight. Photo: Boeing
The events
Multiple events transpired before Korean Air disciplined the cabin chief. This story, as reported by One Mile At A Time, is shocking since there seems to be a legitimate concern of passenger safety. The events started while on the ground.

Pre-departure
Many airlines serve pre-departure beverages in premium cabins. These are usually options such as juice, water, and champagne.

The captain reportedly attempted to take a glass of champagne. His efforts were impeded by a member of the cabin crew. After this denial, the captain reportedly asked for alcohol to be served in a paper cup rather than proper glassware. Ultimately, glassware isn't the issue. Alcohol and crew duties tend not to mix well.

In-flight
During the long-haul trek from Seoul to Amsterdam, the captain decided to try again for a glass of wine. Again, a cabin crew member refused this request. However, in this case, the crewmember reported the case to the cabin chief.

Korean Air
A Korean Air cabin crew member alerted the cabin chief as to the captain's request. Photo: Boeing
The cabin chief then had a word with all the crew onboard the aircraft. This move is not entirely unwise, since the captain could make the request again which could be obliged by a different crew member. Most importantly, the cabin chief asked for secrecy as the captain likely would not appreciate this plan. Unfortunately, this ended up being the case.

Altercation
The co-pilot told the captain about the cabin chief's actions. This led to some anger flaring as the pilots and the cabin chief got into a bit of an argument, since each side had a different story. Fortunately, the aircraft landed safely in Amsterdam with all members of crew and staff unharmed.

After landing
The cabin chief filed a complaint about the captain's actions. Except, this action was taken using Korean's anonymous online message board. Korean Air then investigated and called in both parties for a resolution.

The outcome
The captain received a verbal warning. Meanwhile, the cabin chief ended up with a demotion due to disrupting the onboard experience with such a scuffle. There most definitely may have been an issue tied to Korean cultural norms. Typically, yielding to higher authority figures is encouraged. In this case, the cabin chief did not comply with the request. For reference, here is a post on Korean Air's Instagram account detailing table etiquette:

In other East Asian countries, like Japan, the issue of pilots and alcohol is taken very seriously. Recently, the Japan Airlines President took a pay cut due to an incident involving a drunk pilot.

Overall
There very well could be grounds for the cabin chief's demotion. The entire story is still not out in the open since details regarding the inflight altercation are a bit scarce. However, there also seems to be a slight misalignment of punishment. A captain who asks for alcohol multiple times inflight only receives a verbal warning. Meanwhile, a crewmember who denied the captain's request receives a demotion.