On April 9, families of victims from the Jeju Air disaster held a press conference in front of the Blue House in Seoul, one year and two months after the tragedy. They are grappling with the discovery of victims' remains and personal items at the site of the accident at Muan International Airport, prompting criticism regarding the inadequacies of the initial recovery efforts. The victims' families expressed profound sorrow and anger, highlighting that their loved ones' remains had been treated with disrespect and symbolic neglect by the state.

Kim Yoo-jin, the representative of the families, has lost her father, mother, and younger brother in the disaster. The recent discovery of a 25 cm long bone identified as her father's leg bone has intensified her grief, as she expressed disbelief that significant human remains could be left among trash for over a year. Her emotional appeal questions whether this is merely an administrative error or a systematic failure of the state to handle the aftermath of the disaster appropriately, underscoring a persistent sentiment of abandonment that plagues the families.

The outrage was echoed by other family members who lost loved ones in the tragedy, such as Jeong Hyun-gyeong, who lamented the inability to find personal items belonging to her daughter, now learned to have been exposed to the elements for over a year. Additionally, criticisms were leveled at the government's repeated failures in disaster response, likening the situation to historical tragedies in South Korea where similar neglect has occurred. This ongoing frustration from the victims' families points to a systemic issue in the way authorities manage the aftermath of such disasters, raising serious questions about trust and accountability in government responses to tragedies.