"Tragic Incident: Pilot Stabs Colleague to Death and Attempts to Strangle Another After Mental Health Ban"

A PILOT has been stabbed to death and a second strangled by an ex-colleague over a “grudge,” it has been alleged.

Both attacks happened in the South Korean city of Busan, where air crew are now thought to be in hiding after requesting urgent police protection.

The suspect, a man in his 50s, has been captured, according to some news otlets, but others report that he is still at large.

Police believe that the man – who has been named as Captain B for legal reasons – worked with the victim, with the pair being co-pilots until 2024 when he left the Korean airline.

He is believed to have resigned after being grounded following concerns raised in a mental health evaluation.

One working hypothesis is that he held a grudge against those involved in the decision to ban him from flying.

The first attack happened outside a lift at a home in Ilsanseo-gu, Goyang, near Seoul, at around 4.30 am on Monday.

Captain B strangled his victim – identified as Mr C – with a tool, but the man managed to resist and fled the scene before reported the incident to police.

It was 24 hours later that he is believed to have fatally stabbed another former colleague, outside an apartment in Busanjin District at around 5.30am.

The victim was discovered by a neighbour and transported to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Until his arrest, the suspect evaded capture using so-called “analogue methods.”

He kept his mobile phone turned off and used cash instead of credit cards to remain undetected.

Industry sources told the Seoul Economic Daily that the man had been embroiled in severe conflicts with colleagues over health issues and his retirement process.

Pilots undergo mandatory, periodic assessments as part a medical exam to continue their job.

In the UK, it is carried out by a specially trained aviation medical examiner. It is then repeated every year or six months depending on age.

Eze Chidiebere Paul

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