SEOUL — A top executive of Korean Air Lines Co resigned yesterday amid mounting public criticism that she had delayed a plane over how she was served macadamia nuts.

Company officials said its chairman and chief executive Cho Yang-ho has accepted the resignation of Ms Cho Hyun-ah, his eldest daughter and an executive vice-president.

The junior Cho was under public fire following media revelations that a recent Korean Air flight from New York to South Korea returned to the gate because she ordered a senior crew member off the plane.

Ms Cho was angered that she had been served a bag of macadamia nuts instead of nuts on a plate.

The airline has apologised for inconveniencing passengers.

But it also said it was “natural” for Ms Cho to fault the crew’s ignorance of procedures.

The flight was taxiing to the runway when a junior flight attendant reportedly served the in-flight snack in a packet.

Ms Cho, 40, who oversees in-flight experiences for the family-run flag carrier, took exception to the arrival of the nuts that she had not requested, as well as how they had been served.

She summoned the chief flight attendant who, she argued, was responsible for the crew failing to follow the airline service manual correctly and should therefore leave the plane, the airline said.

As a result, the plane had to return to the terminal at John F Kennedy International Airport in New York, causing an 11-minute delay in its arrival.

The incident garnered substantial media attention and public criticism of Ms Cho’s action.

In a statement, South Korea’s Transport Ministry said it was investigating the case to see if it involved any breach of aviation safety regulations. “If the investigation finds any violations, the necessary action will be taken against the carrier,” it said.

One ministry official said that Ms Cho’s action had been “totally inappropriate”.

Seoul’s main opposition party also called for a thorough probe, saying the daughter of the Korean Air chief executive had a responsibility to protect the airline’s image.

“Why did she have to make all that fuss because of some stupid macadamia nuts?” said the New Politics Alliance for Democracy in a statement. AGENCIES