It has been confirmed that one of the new executives that T’way Air is set to appoint next week is a cousin of Chairman Seo Jun-hyuk of Daemyung Sono Group. Daemyung Sono secured management rights of T’way Air by acquiring equity in Tway Holdings from YeaRimDang and others in February. The two candidates for the new board of directors are former colleagues of Chairman Seo's cousin.
According to industry sources on the 18th, T’way Air will hold an extraordinary shareholders' meeting on the 24th of this month to discuss the appointment of six internal directors, including Chairman Seo Jun-hyuk, and three external directors. This follows the Fair Trade Commission's approval of the corporate merger between Daemyung Sono Group and T’way Air on the 10th, necessitating a change in the board composition.
Daemyung Sono Group, which has no experience in the airline transportation industry, plans to appoint candidates Lee Sang-yoon, Ahn Woo-jin, and Seo Dong-bin, all of whom have backgrounds with Korean Air, as internal directors. Among the nine candidates for the board, only these individuals have experience working in an airline. Candidate Ahn Woo-jin is a cousin of Chairman Seo Jun-hyuk. He joined Korean Air in 2003 and accumulated experience mainly in sales and passenger operations before moving to Sono International in 2015.
Candidates Lee Sang-yoon and Seo Dong-bin are former colleagues of Ahn at Korean Air. Ahn worked for about 21 years at Korean Air, leaving as the head of the Policy Planning Team in the Policy Support Office after roles in maintenance and human resources. Seo has extensive experience in the institutional sector of passenger management, leaving as a Vice Administrator in the Passenger Sales System (PSS) Promotion Office at Korean Air after 12 years.
The airline transportation industry is intricately intertwined with regulations, safety management, operations, and marketing. It has public characteristics and significant social impact in the event of accidents. For this reason, individuals with extensive experience across passengers, cargo, and ancillary businesses are appointed to the management.
After the changes to the board of T’way Air, Daemyung Sono Group will sequentially carry out major licensing procedures, including the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport's approval for major shareholders' qualifications and changes to aviation business licenses.
A representative from T’way Air stated regarding the entry of Chairman Seo's cousin into the board, "It has not yet been finalized, so there is nothing specific to say."