inspections of the country’s Boeing 737-800 aircraft focus on landing gear

Members of a police scientific research team conduct a search operation near the site where a Jeju Air Boeing 737-800 crashed at Muan International Airport on January 1, 2025. – / AFP After the accident which left 179 dead in Muan, South Korea announced, Wednesday January 1, that the complete inspection of all Boeing 737-800 planes operated by airlines in the country focused “primarily” on landing gear. The ongoing reviews “mainly focus on the landing gear, which did not deploy properly in this case,” said Director General for Aviation Safety Policy Yoo Kyeong-soo. The South Korean low-cost carrier’s plane was carrying a total of 181 people, including six crew members. Only two people, a hostess and a steward, survived, making this accident the worst air disaster in history on South Korean soil. South Korean and American investigators, notably from Boeing, are combing the site of the accident which occurred Sunday morning at Muan airport (Southwest). As it is impossible to extract on site the information contained in “the damaged flight data recorder, it was decided today to transport it to the United States for analysis in collaboration” with American investigators, said the South Korean Vice Minister of Aviation, Joo Jong-wan. A few hours earlier, he had announced that the investigators deployed on site had extracted the first data from the other black box, the one containing the conversations in the cockpit. Its study should make it possible to listen to the latest exchanges between the pilots. Read also | Article reserved for our subscribers Jeju Air crash: South Korean government ordered inspection of country’s Boeing 737-800s Read later Airport architecture criticized Sunday morning, this Boeing from the South’s low-cost carrier Korean Jeju Air, coming from Bangkok, landed on its belly at Muan, hitting a concrete wall at the end of the runway. Under the weight of the impact, the plane bent in two and caught fire. The possibility of a collision with birds was also mentioned to explain the tragedy. The control tower at Muan airport had sent a warning to this effect to the crew three minutes before the crash. The pilot had, for his part, issued a distress message before the emergency landing. Le Monde Mémorable Test your general knowledge with the editorial staff of “Le Monde” Test your general knowledge with the editorial staff of “Le Monde” Discover Jet engines can lose power, or even stop completely, after sucking in a bird. Critics, however, focus on the architecture of the airport, in particular on the presence of the solid obstacle struck by the plane, which is a guidance aid tool present at other airports in the country. Read also | Article reserved for our subscribers Jeju Air flight accident: shock and questions in South Korea in the face of the worst air disaster in the country’s history Read later The question of an equipment malfunction was also raised, with local media reporting that the landing gear had deployed correctly when the pilot attempted to land the first time but that it had not extended on his second attempt. Videos show the plane making an emergency landing with the landing gear retracted and the flaps not extended. The question “will probably be examined (…) with a complete review of the various testimonies and evidence”, explained the Ministry of Regional Planning, which supervises civil aviation. Identification of victims completed At Muan airport, bereaved families are increasingly frustrated by the slow process of handing over remains. The bodies were badly damaged by the accident, making identification work extremely difficult, as investigators struggle to preserve clues at the crash site. The new interim president, Choi Sang-mok, who took office last week, announced Wednesday that “overnight, the process of identifying the 179 victims [avait] been completed.” “Our investigators, along with the US National Transportation Safety Board and the manufacturer, are conducting a joint investigation,” Choi said on Wednesday during a meeting on disaster management. “A comprehensive analysis and review of the aircraft structure and data [des boîtes noires] will reveal the cause of the accident,” he said. The first investigations carried out on site focused on the locator, this landing assistance system present at other airports in the country and which, in Muan, was installed on the concrete wall in question. The plane was mainly carrying tourists returning from a stay in Thailand. With the exception of two Thais, all the passengers were of South Korean nationality. Altars in memory of the victims have been erected across the country, including in Seoul and at Muan Airport. Le Monde with AFP Reuse this content



Source link