Bill would align qualification systems for military and civilian controllers, strengthen Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport oversight authority

Rep. Bok Gi-wang of the Democratic Party of Korea [provided by the lawmaker's office]
Rep. Bok Gi-wang of the Democratic Party of Korea [provided by the lawmaker's office]

Rep. Bok Gi-wang of the Democratic Party of Korea, who represents Asan-gap in South Chungcheong Province and serves as the ruling party's floor coordinator on the National Assembly's Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee, announced Wednesday that he had introduced a partial amendment to the Aviation Safety Act. The bill would apply civilian aviation safety standards to military personnel providing air traffic control services to civilian aircraft and strengthen the national aviation safety oversight system.

Under the current Aviation Safety Act, the law does not in principle apply to military aircraft or personnel engaged in related aviation duties. As a result, military air traffic controllers at military airfields who provide control services to civilian aircraft operate under a separate qualification management system from their civilian counterparts.

However, because control services provided to civilian aircraft using military airfields are directly tied to the safety of those aircraft, concerns have long been raised that applying different qualification and safety management standards solely on the basis of military affiliation needs to be addressed from an aviation safety standpoint.

The amendment would require military personnel and civilian employees of the military who provide air traffic control services to civilian aircraft at military airfields — as designated by the minister of national defense under the Act on the Operation of Military Aircraft — to be subject to the air traffic controller and specialized air traffic controller qualification systems under the Aviation Safety Act.

However, taking into account the particular nature of military personnel, the bill sets the minimum age for obtaining a specialized air traffic controller qualification — applicable only to facilities installed at military airfields — at 19. It also recognizes military physical examinations and aptitude tests conducted by the minister of national defense as equivalent to civil aviation medical certificates and controller aptitude assessments, minimizing unnecessary duplication of procedures.

The amendment also clarifies the legal status and oversight authority of aviation safety inspectors designated by the Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. It would allow inspectors, when necessary, to enter and inspect aviation safety-related facilities and aircraft, review and copy ledgers, documents and electronic records, and question relevant personnel, thereby strengthening the effectiveness of national aviation safety oversight.

In addition, the bill expands the scope of emergency safety measures — including temporary suspension of operations or duties — to cover not only safe flight operations but also cases where there is a serious risk to an aircraft's airworthiness.

"Even at a military airfield, if civilian aircraft are using it and receiving control services, the aviation safety standards protecting the lives and safety of the public must be the same," Bok said. "This amendment is not about ignoring the military's unique characteristics or converting all military aviation operations to a civilian system — it is about applying a unified national qualification and oversight framework only to the control functions directly connected to civilian aviation safety. We will build the institutional foundation that reduces blind spots in aviation safety while preserving the expertise of both the civilian and military sectors."


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