Park Soo-hong: 'I had no idea reversing a deplaning request would cause a delay'

Korean TV personality Park Soo-hong posted a public apology on the 26th, three days after his family caused a departure delay on a flight from Incheon International Airport to Guam. What made the incident more than a routine travel complaint was the procedural chain it set in motion: a single reversed decision by a passenger, even a well-meaning one, requires airlines to repeat checked-baggage screening and security checks before the aircraft can depart.

On the 23rd, Park boarded the flight with his family, including a young child who began crying intensely enough that he could not be seated. Worried about disturbing other passengers during what would be a long flight, Park told cabin crew he wanted to deplane. The airline began the standard process of offloading his checked baggage, as aviation security rules require that no bag remain on a flight without its owner aboard.

While the crew worked through that process, the child stopped crying. Park then told cabin crew the family would stay on board after all. At that point, the offloaded baggage had to be reloaded, re-screened, and cleared through security again before the flight could depart. The cumulative delay affected all passengers on the flight.

What Park said

In his SNS post, Park did not minimize what happened or offer partial explanations. "My child was crying so intensely right after boarding that I panicked and made a poor judgment call," he wrote. "I told a crew member we would deplane, thinking a long flight with a crying child would cause even more inconvenience to other passengers. When my child stopped crying while we waited, I said we would stay on board. I did not realize at the time that reversing that decision would cause significant delays through security checks and baggage reloading. This happened entirely because of my ignorance of aviation-related procedures, and there is no excuse for it."

He closed by directing his apology to both passengers who lost time and to airline staff who had to manage the situation on the ground.

For most passengers, the mechanics of the rule are invisible: once a bag is checked and its owner requests to leave the plane, that bag cannot simply be put back. Every piece of luggage must be accounted for and cleared again before departure. It is a security standard, not a discretionary airline call, which is why a change of mind at the boarding gate carries consequences that extend well beyond the individual traveler.