South Korean authorities seeking answers to the country’s deadliest plane disaster are investigating the role of a hardened barrier at the end of a runway that was hit after the jet crash-landed on Sunday.
The structure may only partly explain why Sunday’s Jeju Air flight ended in such a violent manner. All but two of the 181 people onboard died when the plane slid down the runway at Muan international airport and burst into flames after hitting the dirt-and-concrete embankment built to house navigation equipment.
A report by the Chosun Ilbo newspaper on Tuesday said the airport’s operating manual, uploaded early in 2024, had noted that the raised ground was too close to the end of the runway, at 199 metres (652ft) away. Airport officials responded at the time by saying “adjustments would be considered” during future development, Chosun reported.
The embankment was built to house a localiser, an antenna system that emits radio signals to guide aircraft toward the runway. It is essential for safe landings and needs to be placed relatively in line with the runway.
The embankment has been a focus of attention but it is not unusual to have obstacles and hazards near the end of runways – not only navigation equipment but also major roads, warehouses, trees and often open water.
The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) recommends a 240-metre safety area at the end of runways but only mandates a 90-metre area.
Several other key questions remain for investigators, including why the jet touched down late on the runway at such a high speed with no landing gear deployed and no apparent use of the wing flaps, which are used to slow a plane down.
South Korea’s director general for airport policy, Kim Hong-rak, told a news briefing that officials would “conduct an additional review of our airport safety standards”.
The US National Transportation Safety Board said on Tuesday that it had sent investigators to South Korea to assist with the investigation.
Families of the dead remained at Muan international airport on Tuesday to demand more information from authorities.
The national police agency said it had enlisted additional officials and would use rapid DNA analysers to speed up the identification of five bodies. All of the other victims have been identified, but most remain at a temporary morgue at the airport.
Early theories about the cause of the crash centred on a bird strike, but some experts do not believe such an event – which is relatively common – would have been forceful enough to prevent the pilot from lowering the Boeing 737-800’s landing gear as it approached the runway.
Investigators are trying to establish if any of the aircraft’s control systems were disabled, and why the pilot apparently attempted to land so soon after declaring an emergency. The plane, powered by two CFM International 56-7B26 engines, appeared to be travelling at great speed when the pilot attempted what is known as a belly landing.
“I can’t think of any reason for being forced to make a landing like this,” said John Nance, an aviation safety expert and former military and commercial pilot who flew 737s for Alaska Airlines.
Jeju Air’s chief executive, Kim Yi-bae, said maintenance staff had not flagged any problems with the aircraft when it was inspected before takeoff on Sunday.
Speaking at a televised press conference, Kim said the airline would reduce its winter services by 10-15% and strive to win back the trust of the travelling public.
The crash poses a serious challenge to South Korea’s acting president, Choi Sang-mok, who has ordered an emergency safety inspection of the county’s entire airline operation, while the transport ministry will inspect all 101 Boeing 737-800s in operation in the country by the end of the week.
Choi, who replaced the impeached former acting president Han Duck-soo at the weekend, said the priority was to identify the remaining victims and support the passengers’ families. “Even before the final results are out, we ask that officials transparently disclose the accident investigation process and promptly inform the bereaved families,” he said at a disaster management meeting.
Choi had immediately declared a seven-day period of mourning and paid his respect at a memorial at the crash site. Similar memorials have been set up at other locations around the country, and flags were flying at half mast.
Representatives from the US NTSB, the US Federal Aviation Administration and the aircraft manufacturer Boeing planned to meet in Muan on Tuesday.
Establishing the cause of the accident could prove more complicated and time-consuming than usual, after the ministry said the plane’s damaged flight data recorder was missing key pieces, making it more difficult to extract its data. The second “black box” containing the cockpit voice recorder was in better condition, the Yonhap news agency said.
Park Han-shin, whose brother died in the crash, said he had been told by authorities that his brother had been identified but said he had not been able to see his body.
South Korean authorities will be under pressure to avoid a repeat of the aftermath of the Sewol ferry disaster in April 2014, in which more than 300 people died, mostly high school students. Many relatives of the victims complained it took authorities too long to identify the dead and to establish the cause of the accident.
The bodies of four of the identified victims in Sunday’s crash have been handed over to their families, Yonhap said, citing local officials.
