All 175 passengers and four of the crew died when the Jeju Air Boeing 737-800 skidded off the runway at Muan International Airport and burst into flame. CatastropheSouth Korea
South Korea orders safety probe after Jeju Air plane crash
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All 175 passengers and four of the crew died when the Jeju Air Boeing 737-800 skidded off the runway at Muan International Airport and burst into flames
Acting South Korean President Choi Sang-mok has ordered an emergency safety probe of the country’s entire airline operation system after 179 people were killed in one of the worst plane crashes in South Korea’s history.
“As soon as the accident recovery is conducted, the Transport Ministry is requested to conduct an emergency safety inspection of the entire aircraft operation system to prevent recurrence of aircraft accidents,” Choi said at a disaster management meeting in Seoul.
Jeju Air flight 7C2216 was carrying 181 people from Thailand to South Korea on Sunday when it made a mayday call and belly-landed before skidding off the runway at Muan International Airport. It then crashed into a wall and burst into flames.
All passengers and four of the six crew were killed in the crash. Two crew members were pulled from the wreckage alive and taken to hospital.
Officials initially cited a bird strike as the likely cause of the crash.
Seoul said it would conduct a special inspection of all 101 Boeing 737-800s operating in the country. It added that US investigators — possibly including from plane manufacturer Boeing — will join the investigation.
“We are reviewing plans to conduct a special inspection on B737-800 aircraft,” Joo Jong-wan, head of the aviation policy bureau at South Korea’s Transport Ministry, said on Monday.
