Airline CEO apologizes for accident
Jeju Air CEO Kim E-Bae apologized for the accident and expressed his condolences to the families who lost their loved ones.
“Regardless of the cause, I take full responsibility as CEO,” Kim said, quoted by South Korea’s Yonhap news agency.
Kim and his colleagues bowed in apology at a news conference.
167 have been confirmed dead
Reporting from Seoul, South Korea
The national fire agency has confirmed the death toll so far at 167. Officials are increasing the death toll as victims arrive at the morgue, and the number is expected to rise.
Of the victims, 79 were men, 77 were women and 11 others whose genders were not immediately identifiable.
Plane ‘completely destroyed’ by fire, authorities say
Reporting from Seoul, South Korea
Jeju Air’s Boeing 787 has been “completely destroyed by fire,” Joo Jong-wan, director of the Aviation Policy Division at South Korea’s Transportation Ministry, said in a briefing.
So far, two people, both cabin crew members, have been rescued, Joo said, and the runway at Muan International Airport will be closed at least until the morning of Jan. 1. Among the passengers were two Thai nationals, he added.
Joo said investigators have recovered both the flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorders, which will be key in providing information about the final moments of the fatal landing.
The full investigation could take between six months and three years, he added.
Jeju Air crash deadliest of year, first in airline’s history
At least 151 people died in the Jeju plane crash, making it the deadliest air disaster of the year.
It is also the first fatal accident in the history of the low-cost airline, founded in 2005.
The death toll rises to 151
Reporting from Seoul, South Korea
The death toll from the accident has risen to 151, according to local authorities.
Boeing expresses condolences
The Jeju Air flight was a Boeing 737-800 and was carrying 181 passengers and crew.
A chronology of the sequence of events that led to the disaster.
Reporting from Seoul, South Korea
“The pilot declared May after issuing the bird strike alert,” said Joo Jong-wan, director of the Aviation Policy Division of South Korea’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transportation, adding that the plane was ” completely destroyed” in the accident.
The plane initially attempted to land on the airport’s Runway 1, but the pilot was told to land on Runway 19, in the opposite direction, due to a bird strike warning, Joo said.
A minute later, the pilot sent a distress signal after the bird hit and attempted to land on runway 19. While passing over the runway, the plane collided with a safety system called a localizer, which provides guidance during landing, and did not. managed to lower the landing gear. and crashed into a wall, Joo said.
Death toll rises to 127 after plane crashes at South Korean airport
Reporting from Seoul, South Korea
At least 127 people were killed when a commercial airliner crashed at a South Korean airport on Sunday, authorities said.
The Jeju Air flight skidded off the runway while landing at Muan International Airport and caught fire after the crash, a spokesman for the country’s National Fire Agency said.
The flight, which departed from Bangkok, was carrying 175 passengers and six crew members, said Joo Jong-wan, director of the Aviation Policy Division at South Korea’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transportation. At least two of the passengers were Thai, Joo said.
“We suspect that the accident may have been caused by a malfunctioning landing gear,” Lee Jung-hyun, chief of the Muan Fire Department, said at a briefing. Lee said a bird strike and adverse weather also appeared to have played a role, but cautioned that the exact cause is still under investigation.
“The pilot declared an emergency after issuing the bird strike alert,” Joo said, adding that the plane was “completely destroyed” in the crash.
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