South Korea decides not to revoke Jin Air's license

SEOUL, Aug. 17 (UPI) -- The South Korean government announced Friday it's decided not to revoke the business license for a Korean Air's budget carrier Jin Air.

The low-cost carrier has been under fire for its appointment of former vice president Cho Hyun-min, who is the younger daughter of Korean Air chairman Cho Yang-ho and an American citizen, as a member of its board of directors.

South Korea's aviation law forbids a foreign national to be on a board of directors.

Cho had served as a board member of Jin Air between 2010 and 2016, according to Yonhap.

She was accused of throwing a cup of water to an advertising agency official in a meeting in April. The incident has led to a series of revelations of misconducts by members of the Korean Air owner family.

The ministry of land, infrastructure and transport said Friday that it decided to keep the airline operating over concerns of hefty costs from closure, such as massive layoffs, inconveniences to customers and losses that shareholders would suffer.

Instead, the ministry said some restrictions will be imposed on Jin Air to limit their business activities, such as opening new routes and registering new air flights, that could prevent them to increase revenues.