The authorities raised the official death toll to 176, after this Sunday a commercial plane skidded off the runway and crashed into a fence after landing at Muan International Airport. (southeast), although it is believed that three other people who were on board also died.
The fire service has put the confirmed deaths at 176, while three people remain missing and two have been rescued, both from the crew and who were in the rear of the ship, a Boeing 737-800.
The accident occurred around 9:03 (00:07 GMT), when Jeju Air flight 7C2216, which had departed hours before from Suvarnabhumi airport in Bangkok (Thailand), was trying to land at Muan airport and collided with the fence after leaving the track.
Authorities have confirmed that a total of 181 people were traveling on the plane, including 6 crew members, 173 Korean passengers and 2 Thai passengers. 22 of the victims have already been identified.
The Muan control tower issued a bird collision alert for the plane at 8:57 a.m. local time (23:57 GMT Saturday), while the captain of the aircraft, a Boeing 737-800, issued the “mayday” or distress signal. a minute later, according to the South Korean Ministry of Transportation.
This marks the first official confirmation that the plane suffered a collision with a bird, which could have prevented the deployment of the aircraft’s wheels.
Images taken with a phone by a private individual and reproduced by the MBC channel apparently show the impact of a bird with the right engine of the Jeju Air Boeing.
In total, the accident has so far involved the deployment of some 2,800 members of the fire brigade, police, Armed Forces and Coast Guard.
The country’s acting president, Choi Sang-mok, ordered all possible efforts in rescue operations after the accident and called an emergency meeting.
All domestic and international flights to and from the International Airport of Muan have been canceled at least until January 1 after the accident.
CT