Asiana to sue TV station, transport board over bogus pilot names

Asiana Airlines said it was planning lawsuits against US transport authorities and a TV station for mistakenly confirming and airing false and offensive names for the pilots behind its fatal crash in San Francisco.

Fox network affiliate KTVU news Channel 2 in Oakland identified the pilots of the Asiana Boeing 777 that crashed last weekend as Sum Ting Wong, Wi Tu Lo, Ho Lee Fuk, and Bang Ding Ow - bogus names that sounded suspiciously like broad Asian language stereotypes.

KTVU cited the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) as its source, but quickly realised the mistake and apologised. The NTSB later apologised for the "inaccurate and offensive names that were mistakenly confirmed" as those of the Asiana pilots - and blamed the mistake on an intern.

Asiana, however, said the incident had "seriously tarnished the dignity of the four pilots as well as the company".

"We are planning legal action against KTVU that aired the report as well as the NTSB that confirmed the names," the South Korean airline said.

Three people died when Asiana Airlines Flight 214 crashed while landing at San Francisco International Airport on July 6 and more than 180 were injured.