While working in Seoul with Korean pilots and airline ops staff, I couldn't quite put my finger on just what it was that caused me so much concern for operation I was involved with. After a while it struck me that, at least with the folks I was with, there was no 'culture of aviation'. What I mean by that is, in the US and Europe we have lived with aviation for most of our lives, safety is ingrained and the rules for the operation of aircraft are understood and the risks if we don't .
In Korea this understanding/culture was lacking at a very basic level. I hope that it has improved in the past 6 years or so.