Korean Air to appeal against Russian court's penalty decision

Korean Air Co. said Tuesday it will file an appeal against a Russian court's penalty decision over the "omission" of the South Korean carrier's departure process at a Moscow airport in early 2021.

The Russian arbitration court has recently ordered Korean Air to pay 59 billion won ($46 million) in fine to Russia's customs authorities for the omission, a Korean Air spokesperson said over the phone.

The court's penalty is half of the fine requested by the Russian customs authorities.

The customs authorities imposed a fine of 110 billion won on Korean Air last year, arguing the carrier's KE529 cargo plane headed from Incheon to Frankfurt via Moscow took off without receiving an official seal before departure from the customs office of Sheremetyevo International Airport in February 2021.

But Korean Air claimed it received the seal right after the departure and submitted all necessary documents at the Russian airport at that time. The company sued Russia's federal customs office, saying such a penalty is excessively harsh.

Industry watchers see Russia's imposition of the fine as having to do with its financial problems amid the United States' economic sanctions against Moscow following its invasion of Ukraine last year.

"It is hard to accept the Russian court's decision as we underwent all the necessary procedures (for departure) under the Russian laws and explained the situation several times to the Russian authorities," Korean Air said. (Yonhap)