Victims' families criticise report blaming pilot error for Jeju Air crash
An investigation into South Korea's deadliest air disaster has found that a pilot mistakenly shut off the wrong engine, local media has reported.
All but two of the 181 people on board Jeju Air Flight 2216 were killed when it crashed into a barrier in December while attempting to land at Muan International Airport, following a bird strike on one of its engines.
The release of the investigation, scheduled for last weekend, has been delayed after protests from the families of the victims who were briefed on its findings.
They accused investigators of pinning the blame on the pilot while ignoring other contributing factors.
On the morning of 29 December, the pilots of Flight 2216 reported a bird strike and made a mayday call as their aircraft approached the runway.
The pilots then tried to land from the opposite direction. Video showed the plane making a belly landing - without landing gear - and skidding along the runway into a concrete barrier.
The aircraft's two engines were sent to France in March for analysis. The recent findings from South Korea's Aviation and Railway Accident Investigation Board found that a pilot had turned off the left engine - which had no defects - instead of the right engine, which was severely damaged by the bird strike.
However, families of the victims said that the report did not mention the concrete barrier at the end of the runway, which they argued is what made the accident so devastating. 'The bereaved families seek a fair and transparent investigation into the accident,' they said in a statement, and urged investigators to conduct a press briefing 'only after a full and careful examination has been completed'.
In a statement on Sunday, the Jeju Air pilots' union similarly criticised the recent findings for allegedly focusing on pilots' misjudgement and downplaying other contributing factors.
A source with knowledge of the probe, however, told Reuters that investigators would not change their findings as they had 'clear evidence and backup data'.
Following the crash, South Korea's transport ministry said in January that it would remove concrete barriers at seven airports. In May, families of the victims lodged a criminal complaint against Jeju Air chief executive Kim E-bae, citing professional negligence. Mr Kim is among 24 people being investigated over the accident.
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a day ago
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Victims' families criticise report blaming pilot error for Jeju Air crash
Agencies An investigation into South Korea's deadliest air disaster has found that a pilot mistakenly shut off the wrong engine, local media has reported. All but two of the 181 people on board Jeju Air Flight 2216 were killed when it crashed into a barrier in December while attempting to land at Muan International Airport, following a bird strike on one of its engines. The release of the investigation, scheduled for last weekend, has been delayed after protests from the families of the victims who were briefed on its findings. They accused investigators of pinning the blame on the pilot while ignoring other contributing factors. On the morning of 29 December, the pilots of Flight 2216 reported a bird strike and made a mayday call as their aircraft approached the runway. The pilots then tried to land from the opposite direction. Video showed the plane making a belly landing - without landing gear - and skidding along the runway into a concrete barrier. The aircraft's two engines were sent to France in March for analysis. The recent findings from South Korea's Aviation and Railway Accident Investigation Board found that a pilot had turned off the left engine - which had no defects - instead of the right engine, which was severely damaged by the bird strike. However, families of the victims said that the report did not mention the concrete barrier at the end of the runway, which they argued is what made the accident so devastating. 'The bereaved families seek a fair and transparent investigation into the accident,' they said in a statement, and urged investigators to conduct a press briefing 'only after a full and careful examination has been completed'. In a statement on Sunday, the Jeju Air pilots' union similarly criticised the recent findings for allegedly focusing on pilots' misjudgement and downplaying other contributing factors. A source with knowledge of the probe, however, told Reuters that investigators would not change their findings as they had 'clear evidence and backup data'. Following the crash, South Korea's transport ministry said in January that it would remove concrete barriers at seven airports. In May, families of the victims lodged a criminal complaint against Jeju Air chief executive Kim E-bae, citing professional negligence. Mr Kim is among 24 people being investigated over the accident.
Al Jazeera
27-01-2025
- Al Jazeera
Duck DNA, bird feathers found in ill-fated Jeju Air jet engines: Probe
The engines of a plane that crashed in South Korea last month contained bird remains, a preliminary investigation into the country's worst aviation disaster has found. The six-page report released on Monday by South Korean authorities said both engines of the Boeing 737-800 jet had DNA from Baikal Teals, a type of migratory duck that flies to South Korea for winter in huge flocks. Bird bloodstains and feathers were 'found on each' engine, it added. However, the report provided no initial conclusions about what may have caused the Jeju Air plane to land without its landing gear deployed, and why flight data recorders stopped recording in the final four minutes of the flight. A probe being conducted by South Korean and US investigators continues. 'Group of birds' The plane was flying from Thailand to Muan in South Korea on December 29 when it crash-landed and exploded into a fireball after slamming into a concrete barrier. The disaster killed 179 of the 181 passengers and crew of the plane. 'The pilots identified a group of birds while approaching runway 01, and a security camera filmed HL8088 coming close to a group of birds during a go-around,' the report added, referring to the Jeju Air jet's registration number. After the air traffic control tower cleared the aircraft to land, it advised the pilots to exercise caution against potential bird strikes at 8:58am, the report said. Just a minute later, both the voice and data recording systems stopped functioning, while the plane was already at an altitude of about 152 metres (500 feet) and just 2km (1.2 miles) from the runway. Seconds after the recording systems failed, the pilots declared Mayday due to a bird strike and attempted a belly landing. The plane exploded in flames when it collided with a concrete embankment during its landing, prompting questions about why that type of barricade was in place at the end of the runway. Last week, authorities said they would replace such concrete barriers at airports nationwide with 'breakable structures'. The captain had more than 6,800 flight hours, while the first officer had 1,650 hours, according to the report. Both were killed in the crash, which was survived only by two flight attendants. The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), a UN agency, requires accident investigators to produce a preliminary report within 30 days of the accident and encourages a final report to be made public within 12 months. South Korea's Aviation and Railway Accident Investigation Board has shared its report with ICAO and Thailand, as well as the United States and France, which are the home states of the plane and engine manufacturers.
Al Jazeera
03-01-2025
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South Korea extends Boeing 737-800 inspections as Jeju Air wreckage lifted
Inspections of all 101 Boeing 737-800 jets operated by South Korea's airlines have been extended for another week, the transport ministry said, as authorities began lifting the wreckage of the Jeju Air plane following the country's worst aviation disaster. The inspections of the Boeing jets were supposed to be completed on Friday but were extended to January 10 for additional checks, such as whether airlines spent enough time carrying out maintenance and secured parts for repairs, a ministry official told reporters on Friday. A total of 179 people were killed on Sunday after Jeju Air Flight 2216 from Thailand to South Korea skidded and crashed while trying to land at Muan International Airport southwest of the capital, Seoul. Only two people survived the incident. The exact cause of the crash is still unknown, but investigators have pointed to a bird strike, faulty landing gear and an installation at the end of the runway that the plane struck as possible issues. The transport ministry said it would look at engines, maintenance records and landing gear on all 737-800s, adding that an airline's operations could be suspended if serious violations are found. The plane's engines are produced under General Electric's joint venture with the French aerospace company, Safran. GE is also joining the inspections. The Jeju Air crash adds to headaches faced by Boeing as the company battles to restore trust with customers following two fatal 737 MAX crashes, a mid-air panel blowout, and a seven-week strike. The transport ministry also held an emergency meeting with the chief executives of 11 airlines, including Korean Air Lines and Asiana Airlines, to discuss measures to enhance aviation safety. South Korea's investigation team said on Friday two of its members would leave for the United States next week to analyse the flight data recorder of the crash in cooperation with the US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). The team is also studying the plane wreckage and interviewing airport control tower officials. On Friday, investigators began lifting the wreckage of the ill-fated plane, including what appeared to be an engine, using a large yellow crane. Na Won-ho, South Jeolla provincial police's head of investigations, told a news conference at Muan International Airport, that authorities expect that more human remains may be found from the section of the plane being recovered. 'For all that to be complete and to have the results, we must wait until tomorrow.' Investigators will also analyse data on 107 mobile phones recovered from the crash site, including text messages, for clues on what happened leading up to the crash, Yonhap News said. South Korean acting President Choi Sang-mok on Friday urged investigators to work swiftly to collect evidence from the crash scene and analyse a voice recorder. Unanswered questions include why the aircraft did not deploy its landing gear and what led the pilot to apparently rush into a second attempt at landing after telling air traffic control the plane had suffered a bird strike and declaring an emergency.
