There were 175 passengers and six crew members on board. Video / BNO News via Twitter
A Jeju Air plane carrying 181 people from Bangkok to South Korea crashed on arrival on Sunday, authorities told AFP, with 85 confirmed dead and dramatic video showing the aircraft bursting into flames.
Two people – one crew member and one passenger – were saved from the wreckage as part of an ongoing rescue operation, the national fire agency said in a statement.
“So far, two rescued and 85 dead,” the National Fire Agency said in a statement, with the rescue operation ongoing.
A bird strike and adverse weather likely caused the crash, the local fire chief said.
“The cause of the accident is presumed to be a bird strike combined with adverse weather conditions. However, the exact cause will be announced following a joint investigation,” Lee Jeong-hyun, chief of Muan fire station, said during a briefing.
Video shared by the local MBC broadcaster showed the Jeju Air plane – a Boeing 737-8AS, according to Flight Radar – landing at the Muan International Airport runway with smoke streaming out from the engines, before the entire aircraft is quickly engulfed in flames.
Lee told AFP earlier that there were 62 confirmed deaths from the crash.
“But the tally could rise due to the critically injured,” Lee said.
A plane carrying 181 people crashed off the runway and smashed into a wall at South Korea's Muan International Airport. Photo / AFP
Rescue authorities were evacuating passengers from the rear section of the jet, Lee said
Muan International Airport is in Muan County (Muan-gun), about 288km southwest of Seoul.
The fire agency said it had mobilised 32 fire engines and scores of fire fighters to the scene.
The accident took place at 9.03am (12.03 GMT) during the landing of Jeju Air Flight 2216 (Bangkok to Muan), the Ministry of Land said.
“A total of 175 passengers (including two Thai nationals) and six crew members were on board,” it said.
The initial fire was extinguished and search-and-rescue operations were “under way at the crash site”, it said in a statement around 11am (local time).
People watch the news regarding the plane crash at Seoul Station on December 29, 2024 in Seoul, South Korea. Photo / Getty Images
Engulfed in flames
Officials suspect a landing gear failure, possibly due to a bird strike, may have caused the accident. They have begun an on-site investigation to determine the exact cause, the Yonhap news agency reported.
A photo showed the tail section of the jet engulfed in flames on what appeared to be the side of the runway, with firefighters and emergency vehicles nearby.
South Korean Acting President Choi Sang-mok called for the mobilisation of all resources to save the passengers.
“All related agencies ... must mobilise all available resources to save the personnel,” he instructed officials in a statement.
Choi is convening an emergency meeting with cabinet members to discuss rescue operations and a response, his office said.
It is the first fatal accident in the history of Jeju Air, one of South Korea’s largest low-cost carriers, which was set up in 2005.
On August 12, 2007, a Bombardier Q400 operated by Jeju Air carrying 74 passengers came off the runway due to strong winds at the southern Busan-Gimhae airport, resulting in a dozen injuries.
South Korea’s aviation industry has a solid track record for safety, experts say.
Last year, a passenger opened an emergency exit on an Asiana Airlines flight as it was preparing to land, with the aircraft landing safely but several people hospitalised.
