Latest news with #Jeju Air
Malay Mail
3 days ago
- General
- Malay Mail
Jeju Air crash: Pilots shut down working engine after bird strike, probe reveals
SEOUL, July 27 — A Jeju Air plane that crashed in December during an emergency landing after a bird strike could have kept flying on the damaged engine that was still working after pilots shut down the other one, according to an update from South Korean investigators. The Boeing 737-800 instead belly-landed at Muan airport without its landing gear down, overshot the runway and erupted into a fireball after slamming into an embankment, killing all but two of the 181 people on board. Investigators have not yet produced a final report into the deadliest air disaster on South Korean soil, but information about the plane's two engines has begun to emerge. According to a July 19 update prepared by investigators and seen by Reuters but not publicly released following complaints from victims' family members, the left engine sustained less damage than the right following a bird strike, but the left engine was shut down 19 seconds after the bird strike. The right engine experienced a 'surge' and emitted flames and black smoke, but investigators said it 'was confirmed to be generating output sufficient for flight,' in the five-page update, which included post-crash photos of both engines. No reason for the crew's actions was given and the probe is expected to last months as investigators reconstruct the plane's technical state and the picture understood by its pilots. Experts say most air accidents are caused by multiple factors and caution against putting too much weight on incomplete evidence. More questions So far, public attention has focused on the possibility that the crew may have shut down the less-damaged engine, rekindling memories of a 1989 Boeing 737-400 crash in Kegworth, England, where pilots shut down a non-damaged engine by mistake. The disaster led to multiple changes in regulations including improvements in crew communication and emergency procedures. A source told Reuters on Monday that the South Korea-led probe had 'clear evidence' that pilots had shut off the less-damaged left engine after the bird strike, citing the cockpit voice recorder, computer data and a switch found in the wreckage. But the latest update on the crash also raises the possibility that even the more heavily damaged engine that was still running could have kept the plane aloft for longer. It did not say what level of performance the operating engine still had, nor what extra options that might have given to the plane's emergency-focused crew before the jet doubled back and landed in the opposite direction of the runway from its initial plan with its landing gear up. Both engines contained bird strike damage and both experienced engine vibrations after the strike. The right engine showed significant internal damage, the Korean-language update from South Korea's Aviation and Railway Accident Investigation Board (ARAIB) said, but it did not describe the damage found in the left engine. The update did not say how the left engine was operating nor the state of systems connected to either engine, said former US National Transportation Safety Board investigator Greg Feith when shown the document translated by Reuters. It contains some new facts but omits far more, resulting in a 'cryptic' document, he said. ARAIB, which plans to issue a final report next June, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Safety experts say it is common for early reports to contain sparse facts and limited analysis while investigations continue. A preliminary report released in January said feathers and blood stains from ducks were found in both engines. The engines — made by CFM International, jointly owned by and France's Safran — were examined in May and no defects or fault data were found beyond the bird and crash damage, the report said. Families of those who died in the disaster were briefed on the engine findings but asked investigators not to release the July 19 report, saying that it appeared to apportion blame to the pilots without exploring other factors. The report was withheld but Reuters and South Korean media obtained copies. Boeing and GE referred questions about the crash to ARAIB. Safran did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Jeju Air has previously said it is cooperating with ARAIB and is awaiting publication of the investigation. Under global aviation rules, civil air investigations aim to discover crash causes without assigning blame or liability. The Jeju Air pilots' union said ARAIB was 'misleading the public' by suggesting there was no problem with the left engine given that bird remains were found in both. A source who attended the briefing told Reuters that investigators told family members the left engine also experienced a disruptive 'surge,' citing black box data. The pilot union and representatives of bereaved families have asked that evidence be released to support any findings. Relatives say the investigation also needs to focus on the embankment containing navigation equipment, which safety experts have said likely contributed to the high death toll. Global aviation standards call for any navigation equipment in line with runways to be installed on structures that easily give way in case of impact with an aircraft. South Korea's transport ministry has identified seven domestic airports, including Muan, with structures made of concrete or steel, rather than materials that break apart on impact and has said it will improve them. Designs for the new structures are in progress, a ministry official told Reuters last week. — Reuters
Reuters
5 days ago
- General
- Reuters
Jeju Air jet still had a working engine when it crashed, investigation update says
SEOUL, July 27 (Reuters) - A Jeju Air ( opens new tab plane that crashed in December during an emergency landing after a bird strike could have kept flying on the damaged engine that was still working after pilots shut down the other one, according to an update from South Korean investigators. The Boeing (BA.N), opens new tab 737-800 instead belly-landed at Muan airport without its landing gear down, overshot the runway and erupted into a fireball after slamming into an embankment, killing all but two of the 181 people on board. Investigators have not yet produced a final report into the deadliest air disaster on South Korean soil, but information about the plane's two engines has begun to emerge. According to a July 19 update prepared by investigators and seen by Reuters but not publicly released following complaints from victims' family members, the left engine sustained less damage than the right following a bird strike, but the left engine was shut down 19 seconds after the bird strike. The right engine experienced a "surge" and emitted flames and black smoke, but investigators said it "was confirmed to be generating output sufficient for flight," in the five-page update, which included post-crash photos of both engines. No reason for the crew's actions was given and the probe is expected to last months as investigators reconstruct the plane's technical state and the picture understood by its pilots. Experts say most air accidents are caused by multiple factors and caution against putting too much weight on incomplete evidence. So far, public attention has focused on the possibility that the crew may have shut down the less-damaged engine, rekindling memories of a 1989 Boeing 737-400 crash in Kegworth, England, where pilots shut down a non-damaged engine by mistake. The disaster led to multiple changes in regulations including improvements in crew communication and emergency procedures. A source told Reuters on Monday that the South Korea-led probe had "clear evidence" that pilots had shut off the less-damaged left engine after the bird strike, citing the cockpit voice recorder, computer data and a switch found in the wreckage. But the latest update on the crash also raises the possibility that even the more heavily damaged engine that was still running could have kept the plane aloft for longer. It did not say what level of performance the operating engine still had, nor what extra options that might have given to the plane's emergency-focused crew before the jet doubled back and landed in the opposite direction of the runway from its initial plan with its landing gear up. Both engines contained bird strike damage and both experienced engine vibrations after the strike. The right engine showed significant internal damage, the Korean-language update from South Korea's Aviation and Railway Accident Investigation Board (ARAIB) said, but it did not describe the damage found in the left engine. The update did not say how the left engine was operating nor the state of systems connected to either engine, said former U.S. National Transportation Safety Board investigator Greg Feith when shown the document translated by Reuters. It contains some new facts but omits far more, resulting in a "cryptic" document, he said. ARAIB, which plans to issue a final report next June, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Safety experts say it is common for early reports to contain sparse facts and limited analysis while investigations continue. A preliminary report released in January said feathers and blood stains from ducks were found in both engines. The engines - made by CFM International, jointly owned by GE (GE.N), opens new tab and France's Safran ( opens new tab - were examined in May and no defects or fault data were found beyond the bird and crash damage, the report said. Families of those who died in the disaster were briefed on the engine findings but asked investigators not to release the July 19 report, saying that it appeared to apportion blame to the pilots without exploring other factors. The report was withheld but Reuters and South Korean media obtained copies. Boeing and GE referred questions about the crash to ARAIB. Safran did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Jeju Air has previously said it is cooperating with ARAIB and is awaiting publication of the investigation. Under global aviation rules, civil air investigations aim to discover crash causes without assigning blame or liability. The Jeju Air pilots' union said ARAIB was "misleading the public" by suggesting there was no problem with the left engine given that bird remains were found in both. A source who attended the briefing told Reuters that investigators told family members the left engine also experienced a disruptive "surge," citing black box data. The pilot union and representatives of bereaved families have asked that evidence be released to support any findings. Relatives say the investigation also needs to focus on the embankment containing navigation equipment, which safety experts have said likely contributed to the high death toll. Global aviation standards call for any navigation equipment in line with runways to be installed on structures that easily give way in case of impact with an aircraft. South Korea's transport ministry has identified seven domestic airports, including Muan, with structures made of concrete or steel, rather than materials that break apart on impact and has said it will improve them. Designs for the new structures are in progress, a ministry official told Reuters last week.
South China Morning Post
22-07-2025
- Entertainment
- South China Morning Post
Dancing Jeju Air crew stir backlash in South Korea: ‘the funerals were recent'
A video of dancing crew members from South Korean airline Jeju Air has led to online criticisms of tone deafness, with social media users noting that it is too soon for such lighthearted clips after the crash that killed 179 people in December. The 10-second video, titled 'Feisty Flight Attendants' and uploaded on the airline's official social media channel on July 11, showed three smiling crew members dancing, jumping and flashing V-signs. By Tuesday afternoon, it had garnered 2.2 million views and more than 200,000 likes. However, not everybody was impressed. 'How long has it been since the Muan accident?' one user asked, according to Seoul Economic Daily newspaper. 'It's only been half a year since the accident, so we need at least a year of mourning.' On December 29, Jeju Air Flight 2216 issued a mayday before attempting to land on its belly at Muan Airport. It overran the runway at high speed and struck a concrete-reinforced berm , killing all but two of the 181 people on board. It was the deadliest air disaster on South Korean soil. 'It took a long time to recover the bodies and confirm their identities. The funerals were recent. Wouldn't it be upsetting to see this if it were your family?' another user said, according to Korea JoongAng Daily newspaper. Others, however, defended the crew members in the clip, saying they did nothing wrong. 'Did the flight attendants or first officer cause the accident?' one asked.
ABC News
22-07-2025
- ABC News
Families of victims upset with findings of report into South Korea's Jeju Air plane crash
An investigation into a South Korean plane crash that killed 179 people has found "clear evidence" that the pilots shut off the engine, but families of the victims say they don't trust the report. The Jeju Air flight crash-landed at Muan International Airport on December 29, 2024, skidding along the runway before hitting a wall and exploding. Families of the crash victims said they did not accept the investigation's findings. They have raised questions about the transparency of the report, which they said concluded the crash was an error on the part of the pilots. The findings of the report have now been hushed, and its release date has been delayed. Lawyers representing the families have objected to the publication of the report and said investigators needed to look at other contributing factors, in addition to the bird strike. As a result, a planned press briefing was cancelled and the release of the report was postponed, according to The Korea Times. Groups representing the victims' families and the Jeju Air pilots' union said the media release could not be trusted and hoped investigators would include their views, too. South Korea's Aviation and Railway Accident Investigation Board (ARAIB) has been accused by the union of "misleading the public" by suggesting there was no problem with the left engine, given traces of bird remains were found in both engines. The union also accused the ARAIB of trying to make pilots "scapegoats" by failing to provide scientific and technological grounds that the plane could have landed safely with only the left engine turned on. On Sunday, a day before the report was due to be released, a briefing session for the victims' families was held at Muan International Airport. During the session, the Air Traffic Commission announced the investigation found: "There was no engine defect, and there is circumstantial evidence that the pilot turned off the left engine, not the right engine, which was more severely damaged by the collision, after the bird strike," South Korea's Yonhap News reported. On the same day of the briefing session, Jeju Air Pilots' Union also released a statement, saying: "We are strongly outraged by the unilateral announcement by the Air Transport Commission and the media reports that quoted it without filtering, and we resolutely reject the malicious framing that seeks to shift responsibility to the pilots." In May, the families filed a criminal complaint against 15 people, including South Korean Transport Minister Park Sang-woo, and airline safety representatives. In a statement released by the lawyers for the families, they alleged negligence in managing safety risks and violations of the Aviation Safety Act. They called for a more thorough investigation into the decision to attempt to land straight after a bird strike, the aircraft engine's maintenance, and whether the construction of a runway embankment was appropriate. A source told Reuters the investigators looked at the cockpit voice recorder and computer data. The evidence also included a physical engine switch found in the wreckage, which showed pilots shut off the left engine instead of the right engine when taking emergency steps before it was meant to land, after the reported bird strike. No pre-existing defects were present in recovered engines. "The investigation team has clear evidence and backup data, so its findings will not change," the source told Reuters. The exact release date of the report has not been set; however, under international rules, a final report is expected within a year of the accident.
Arab News
22-07-2025
- Arab News
Jeju Air crash families denounce report blaming pilot error
SEOUL: The families of victims of South Korea's deadliest plane crash on home soil have denounced a government report which blamed the disaster on pilot error, a representative said Tuesday. The Boeing 737-800 was flying from Thailand to South Korea's southwest on December 29 last year but ended up belly-landing at Muan airport and exploding in a fireball after slamming into a concrete barrier, killing 179 people. South Korea's land ministry said it had planned to release the partial findings of the investigation into the crash at the weekend but called off a briefing and withheld the report after the families objected, claiming it could be misleading. The report said a bird strike damaged the plane's right engine but the pilot then mistakenly shut down the left engine instead, a representative for the families, who saw the report, said. The error resulted in a total power loss and a failure of the landing gear system, they said. The pilot said: 'Let's shut down engine number 2 (the right engine),' but the flight data recorder showed that actually it was the left engine that was shut down, according to the report. 'No one has directly seen or heard the cockpit voice recorder or the flight data recorder,' Kim Youn-mi, a representative of the victims' families, said. 'We weren't given any proper explanation about those things. We need to hear that to know. We have the right,' she added. The Jeju Air pilots' union also criticized the report, saying it was 'strongly angered' by the findings and would 'firmly reject the malicious attempt to shift blame onto the pilot.' The findings were part of an ongoing probe by South Korean and US investigators, who are still investigating the cause of the disaster. A bird strike – feathers and bloodstains were found in both engines – a faulty landing gear and the runway barrier are among the possible issues. The final report is planned to be released in June next year.
