Muan, South Korea: The Jeju Air Boeing 737-800, carrying 175 passengers and six crew members, crashed at Muan International Airport after attempting a second crash landing due to landing gear failure.
The plane veered off the runway, crashed into a wall, and burst into flames.
Two crew members were rescued, but all other missing individuals are presumed dead. The crash is believed to have been caused by a bird strike, which may have led to the landing gear malfunction.
The airport’s control tower warned the plane about the bird strike ahead of the crash, according to South Korea’s Transport Ministry. Weather conditions are also being investigated as potential contributing factors.
Most of the passengers were holidaymakers returning from a Christmas tour in Bangkok.
Lee Jeong-hyeon, chief of the Muan fire station, said rescue teams were searching for bodies scattered by the impact of the crash. The plane was completely destroyed with only the tail recognisable among the wreckage,
South Korea’s worst air disaster in years, the incident marks one of the deadliest in the country’s aviation history.
Jeju Air flight 7C2216 was enroute from Bangkok when the incident occurred at 9:03 AM local time. Authorities are working to confirm the identities of the victims, including 173 South Koreans and two Thai nationals.
Following the disaster, all flights from Muan International Airport have been cancelled.
The last major air disaster in South Korea occurred in 2002, when an Air China aircraft crashed into a hill, killing 129 people. Boeing has expressed condolences and offered support to Jeju Air.
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