Asiana Airlines has dropped plans to sue the San Francisco TV station that aired fake and offensive names for the pilots of Flight 214, Reuters reports.
In a statement, the carrier acknowledged the apology from KTVU, and said it would focus on "managing the aftermath of the accident."
Asiana said Sunday it was planning lawsuits against KTVU and the National Transportation Safety Board, which also issued an apology after a summer intern wrongly confirmed Flight 214's pilots as "Captain Sum Ting Wong," "Wi Tu Lo," "Ho Lee Fuk," and "Bang Ding Ow."
If the airline had decided to go ahead with the suit, it would have had a difficult time winning, Erik Wemple at the Washington Post argued.
An Asiana spokesperson told CNN the false report "resulted in damaging the company's image." Wemple notes:
"To win a judgment against the television station, the airline must prove that the false report so injured its reputation that it resulted in the loss of business. That, it will never be able to do."
That's because any loss of business for the airline can more easily — and logically — be attributed to the deadly crash landing of Flight 214, not a news report about the names of the pilots.
Ken Paulson, president of the First Ammendment Center, agreed. He told CNN:
"It's very difficult to conceive of a defamation suit prevailing here. Everyone who heard this understood it was a prank. And as ludicrous as the report was, at least the news station made a call to try to check."
Three passengers died in the crash landing of Asiana 214 in San Francisco on July 6.
SEE ALSO: Almost No One Died On Asiana 214 Thanks To Incredible Airplane Design
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