(TheIndoDaily.com) – Jeju Air 737-800, a South Korean airline, has crashed at Muan International Airport, South Korea, just after 9 AM local time Sunday ( 7 PM, ET Saturday). The aircraft was carrying 175 passengers and six crew when the disaster struck at the airport.
The footage of the crash, shown by multiple South Korean news outlets showed the plane sliding on its belly at high speed and hit an embankment (ground obstacle) and followed by fire-ball.
According to an official statement from authorities, the aircraft was scheduled at 08:30 AM. At approximately 08:20 AM, during the landing approach at an altitude of 200 meters, the aircraft collided with a bird, causing the right engine to be caught on fire.
The captain then aborted the landing, raised the nose of the aircraft and began circling above the airport while communicating with the control tower to attempt a second landing. The second landing attempt at approximately 09.05 AM, dedicated firefighting authorities were on standby near the runway.
Emergency Decision
The official statement noted that if the landing gear malfunction had been detected earlier, fuel could have been jettisoned, and the runway could have been treated with friction-reducing and flame-cooling materials. However, the time was critically short.
With the fire from the right engine spreading into the aircraft and smoke and toxit gases entering the cabin, there was no time to attempt a third landing. The captain made the urgent decision to proceed with an emergency belly landing.
The aircraft approach angle and manual adjustments by the captain were adequate. However, deceleration depended entirely on reverse thrust from the wings, and the loss of steering control posed significant limitations. The aircraft eventually collided with the protective wall at the end of the runway, which is designed to minimize damage to nearby residential areas.
By Staff Writer
Edited by Roffie Kurniawan