'Nut rage' heiress may face arrest

South Korean prosecutors sought an arrest warrant on Wednesday for Korean Air heiress Cho Hyun-ah, who delayed a flight with a tantrum over snacks.

The incident, which came to be known as "nut rage", caused a global uproar. Cho took exception to being served macadamia nuts she had not asked for - and in a bag, not a bowl.

The prosecutors' office said the 40-year-old daughter of the airline's boss faced charges including violating the country's aviation safety law, coercion and interference in the execution of duty.

"Our office has sent a request for the court to issue an arrest warrant," a spokesman said.

Cho was accused of forcing the chief of the service crew on a Dec 5 flight from New York to Seoul to leave the plane, compelling the taxiing aircraft to return to the gate so he could get off.

A government investigation found that she screamed and hurled abuse at Park Chang-jin, the service chief, and at another flight attendant.

An arrest warrant is also being sought for an unidentified company executive on charges of destroying evidence related to the incident. A court will hold a hearing early next week to review the warrant application.

Cho has insisted that she did not physically assault the chief purser, but prosecutors said she pushed the flight attendant, based on the testimony of passengers and other attendants.

Park has claimed that Cho pushed him into the cockpit door and jabbed him with a service manual.

Cho - one of three children of Korean Air boss Cho Yang-ho, the patriarch of business conglomerate Hanjin Group - has publicly apologized and resigned from all her posts in the organization.

Prosecutors are also investigating whether KAL officials coerced cabin crew to give false testimony to government inspectors to protect Cho.

On Wednesday a transport ministry official was arrested for allegedly leaking details of the ministry's investigation to airline officials.

The ministry has vowed to sanction the carrier with a flight ban, most likely on the New York-Seoul route, that could last up to a month, or with fines of up to $2 million.