The day after the most serious crash in the country's history, which left 179 dead, South Korea announced on Monday, December 30, that it was launching a “full inspection” of the 101 Boeing 737-800 planes used by the country's airlines, by January 3.
A video of the crash that occurred on Sunday morning, broadcast by the local channel MBC, went around the world: we see a plane landing at Muan airport (South-West) on its belly, smoke escaping from its engines, before hitting a wall at the end of the runway and being engulfed in flames. This Boeing 737-800 from the South Korean low-cost airline Jeju Air, coming from Bangkok, was carrying 175 travelers and six crew members. All its passengers were killed, according to the final assessment of the emergency services, with the exception of a hostess and a steward.
The people on board, two Thai nationals and the rest South Korean citizens, ranged in age from 3 to 78 years old. The identities of 146 of the 179 deaths have been confirmed so far, according to Vice Minister for Aviation Joo Jong-wan. The country declared a seven-day national mourning and flags were flown at half-mast, with interim President Choi Sang-mok at the scene of the tragedy for a commemoration ceremony.
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The architecture of the airport in question
According to the authorities, the cause of the tragedy was a collision with birds, which haunts pilots, especially when it comes to jet aircraft whose engines can quickly lose power or stop completely after sucking in a bird. Despite this thesis, critics are increasingly focusing on the airport's architecture.
“Despite the emergency, the landing was remarkably well executed”underlines Kim Kwang-il, professor of aeronautical sciences at Silla University and former pilot, to Agence France-Presse (AFP). But “Normally, there is no such solid obstacle at the end of the runway, it is against international aviation safety standards recommended by (…) the International Civil Aviation Organization and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency. The structure in question caused the plane to crash and burst into flames”he says. “Most of the passengers died because of this obstacle, it’s upsetting”he deplores, calling on the airport authorities to be held accountable.
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In terms of the investigation, the black boxes – the cockpit voice recorder and the flight data recorder – were found on Sunday. The United States National Transportation Safety Agency has composed “a team of American investigators”including Boeing, for ” help ” the South Korean authorities.
A new incident reported on the same aircraft model
On Monday morning, another Jeju Air Boeing 737-800 encountered a landing gear problem, already blamed on Sunday. “The captain contacted ground control and, after taking additional measures, the landing gear returned to normal operation. However, it was decided to return to the airport” from Gimpo (Northwest) shortly after takeoff, Song Kyung-hoon, a company official, told the press.
The Muan crash is the first fatal accident for Jeju Air, which presented its “sincere apologies”. South Korea's air transport sector is considered generally reliable by experts, with such tragedies being very rare. The deadliest accident to take place in South Korea until Sunday was the crash on a hill near Pusan-Gimhae airport of an Air China Boeing 767 coming from Beijing, which had left 129 dead on April 15, 2002.
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