The tragic crash of the Jeju Air jet on December 29 at South Korea’s Muan airport left 179 people dead, marking it as the worst disaster on South Korean soil. The flight data and cockpit voice recorders stopped recording four minutes before the airliner hit a concrete structure, leaving investigators puzzled about what caused the “black boxes” to cease recording. The voice recorder was analyzed in South Korea, but due to missing data, it was sent to a U.S. National Transportation Safety Board laboratory for further examination. Similarly, the damaged flight data recorder was taken to the United States for analysis in collaboration with the U.S. safety regulator.
Key Points:
- The flight data and voice recorders stopped recording four minutes before the plane crashed.
- Investigators aim to determine the cause of the sudden stop in recording.
- The damaged recorders were sent to U.S. laboratories for analysis.
- The crash resulted in 179 fatalities, making it the worst disaster in South Korea.
The pilots of Jeju Air 7C2216 reported a bird strike and declared an emergency moments before the aircraft explosively crashed into an embankment after belly-landing and overshot the runway. Despite an initial warning about bird activity, the pilots tried to abort the landing and conduct a go-around maneuver. However, instead of executing a full go-around, the Boeing 737-800 jet sharply turned and crash-landed without deploying the landing gear. Sim Jai-dong, a former transport ministry accident investigator, noted the surprise of missing crucial data from the final minutes and suggested a complete power failure, including the backup system, which is uncommon in such incidents.
The investigation into the crash has also raised questions about the design and placement of the embankment near the end of the runway. The embankment was built to support the “localiser” system used for assisting aircraft landing, prompting scrutiny over its rigid construction and close proximity to the runway’s end. Some families of the victims have expressed concerns about the transport ministry leading the investigation and called for the involvement of independent experts recommended by the families.
As the investigation progresses, the transport ministry has assured transparency and shared information with the victims’ families. The discovery of missing data and the focus on the embankment highlight the complexities surrounding the tragic crash, emphasizing the need for thorough investigation and accountability in such incidents. The lessons learned from this disaster must serve to prevent similar tragedies in the future.
