Seoul:
The US aviation big Boeing on Sunday prolonged its condolences to the households of victims killed within the Jeju Air airplane crash in South Korea’s Muan. A Boeing 737-800 plane, operated by Jeju Air, flying from Bangkok to South Korea with 181 folks on board crashed on touchdown at Muan International Airport on Sunday, leaving all however two folks plucked from the wreckage feared lifeless.
“We are in touch with Jeju Air concerning Flight 2216 and stand able to help them,” Boeing stated in a press release posted to its X account.
“We lengthen our deepest condolences to the households who misplaced family members, and our ideas stay with the passengers and crew,” the corporate added.
— The Boeing Company (@Boeing) December 29, 2024
The US aerospace firm has seen a turbulent time prior to now few years, with a sequence of embarrassing security blunders. Boeing, earlier this yr, pleaded responsible to the cost of conspiracy to defraud the United States for its function in two deadly 737 Max crashes. However, the Boeing 737-800 has been described dependable workhorse by specialists, with the plane having an especially sturdy security document.
South Korea’s aviation trade has a strong security document and the crash was the primary deadly accident for Jeju Air. The crash is being dubbed because the worst civil aviation catastrophe in South Korea.
What We Know Of The Crash So Far
The Boeing 737-800 plane was reportedly warned of a chook strike by the management tower throughout its first try at touchdown shortly after 9:00 am (midnight GMT). However, minutes later, the pilot issued a “mayday” warning, and it tried to land once more, with a video displaying it trying a “stomach touchdown” with out its touchdown gear activated.
Dramatic video confirmed the airplane skidding alongside the runway with smoke trailing out earlier than it hit a wall on the finish and burst into flames.
Investigations have been launched, however based on a report by AFP, officers suspect the accident may have been brought on by a chook strike and adversarial climate circumstances.
Questions had been additionally raised if the accident occurred as a result of runway being too quick, because the video confirmed the airplane coming off the tarmac and hitting a wall. But, an official informed AFP that it was possible not an element. “The runway is 2,800 metres lengthy, and similar-sized plane have been working on it with out points,” they stated.
There had been a complete of 175 passengers and 6 crew members onboard. Rescue employees plucked out two survivors — each flight attendants — from the wreckage. As of mid-afternoon, 124 folks have been confirmed lifeless.
Officials stated there was “little probability of survival,” for others, including that the airplane was “nearly utterly destroyed,” throughout the crash.
Meanwhile, a rescue operation is underway with a whole bunch of firefighters and different emergency responders — together with navy — deployed to the world.
The accident occurred with South Korea within the throes of a political disaster, with its third president in a month. Acting President Choi Sang-mok, on his third day in workplace, convened an emergency assembly with cupboard members to debate the rescue operation and response and visited the crash scene. He additionally designated the location a particular catastrophe zone.