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Crashed Jeju Air plane had prior incident in 2021
Jeju Air's Boeing 737-800 that clashed at Muan International Airport in South Jeolla Province on Sunday, claiming 179 lives, had experienced a prior incident in 2021, according to authorities on Tuesday. Korea Airports Corp. confirmed that the same aircraft, registered as HL8088 in the Aircraft Technical Information System, had a history of its tail being struck on the runway while taking off from Seoul's Gimpo International Airport in February 2021. The accident resulted in structural damage to
Dec. 31, 2024 -
Plane crash tragedy hangs heavy across Muan community
Muan carries collective sense of grief, responsibility in wake of aviation disaster that unfolded at local airport once regarded as political triumph MUAN, South Jeolla Province — Muan-gun, a quiet county in South Jeolla Province with a population of less than 100,000, was upended when its airport became the site of a fatal plane crash that claimed 179 souls on Sunday. Over the past few days, the once-tranquil neighborhood has been thrust into the national spotlight, thronged by people from acro
Dec. 31, 2024 -
Why is identification of victims delayed?
Delayed transfer of remains suggests severity of damage to victims‘ bodies in Jeju Air crash MUAN, South Jeolla Province -- Two days have passed since the Jeju Air crash, but authorities are still struggling to release victims' remains to families due to the extent of the damage. Among 179 victims, only four individuals, whose bodies remained "intact," were handed over to the families after the bereaved confirmed the victims' identities on Monday night. The remaining bodies were severely damaged
Dec. 31, 2024 -
Military generals indicted over Yoon's martial law
The prosecution said Tuesday that it has indicted military generals who sent troops to the National Assembly and the National Election Commission after a martial law was declared by President Yoon Suk Yeol. The investigation team, led by Park Se-hyun, Chief Prosecutor of the Seoul High Prosecutors’ Office, announced that Yeo In-hyung, former Commander of the Defense Counterintelligence Command, and Lieutenant General Lee Jin-woo, Commander of the Capital Defense Command, have been indicted on ch
Dec. 31, 2024 -
Seoul orders 6-month ban on Han River fireworks cruise after tragedy
The Seoul Metropolitan Government has ordered a six-month suspension of operations for a company that went ahead with a fireworks show on the Han River despite the city’s request to cancel the event following the nation’s deadliest domestic aviation tragedy. In a statement released Monday, the city said, “We have decided to impose a strong measure on Hyundai Cruise, which proceeded with the fireworks show on a cruise ship on the Han River.” The city had asked the company around 2:40 p.m. Sunday
Dec. 31, 2024 -
US investigators, Boeing officials join on-site probe of Jeju Air crash in Muan
A team of investigators from the US government and aircraft manufacturer Boeing Co. have arrived at the site of the Jeju Air crash at Muan International Airport to participate in the investigation into the incident, Seoul officials said Tuesday. According to Seoul's transport ministry, one member from the US Federal Aviation Administration, three experts from the US National Transportation Safety Board and four representatives from Boeing have joined officials of South Korea's Aviation and Railw
Dec. 31, 2024 -
Acting President Choi orders efforts to make necessary improvements to airline system
Acting President Choi Sang-mok on Tuesday directed the government to address necessary improvements to the airline operation system, as the country mourns a tragic plane crash that claimed 179 lives. Choi's order comes after the Jeju Air plane, carrying 181 people, belly-landed and exploded at an airport in the country's southwestern county of Muan on Sunday, leaving only two survivors. The government has since launched an emergency safety inspection of six local airlines operating the same airc
Dec. 31, 2024 -
Car ferry capsizes off southwestern coast; 2 rescued, 5 missing
An 83-ton car ferry capsized off the southwestern coast Monday, leaving two rescued and five others missing, the Coast Guard said. The vessel, presumed to be carrying seven people, capsized at 6:35 p.m. in waters west of Seosan, about 100 kilometers southwest of Seoul, according to the Coast Guard and fire authorities. Coast Guard officials rescued two passengers and are currently searching for five others. Rescue crews were conducting a search near the accident site, but strong currents from th
Dec. 30, 2024 -
A look back at 2024
Tragic Plane Crash A tragic plane crash at Muan International Airport in South Jeolla Province on Sunday morning claimed 179 lives, becoming South Korea's worst domestic aviation disaster to date. Jeju Air flight 7C 2216, a Boeing 737-800 carrying 181 passengers and crew, veered off the runway five minutes after the pilot signaled mayday. The plane collided with the perimeter fence and burst into flames. While the exact cause of the deadly crash was being investigated, a bird strike and a landin
Dec. 30, 2024 -
Muan filled with desperation, grief
Grieving family members form unspoken bond overnight, agree to hold funerals together once identification is completed MUAN, South Jeolla Province -- The night stretched endlessly for hundreds of grieving family members as they waited for authorities to confirm the identities of their loved ones lost in the tragic plane crash. As the names of the victims were announced through microphones one by one, screams of desperation filled the air. At Muan International Airport, where a plane crashed on l
Dec. 30, 2024 -
Honeymoons, birthdays and first foreign trips: Disaster brought cruel end to family events
Many of the 175 passengers that passed away in the Jeju Air flight 7C 2216 crash on Sunday had been families on year-end trips, some of whom were children travelling overseas for the first time in their lives. Among them was a 43-year-old man surnamed Koh, who worked at the promotions department for the Kia Tigers professional baseball team. Koh, his wife, and his 3-year-old son had been on their first overseas trip as family. "My son's heading overseas for the first time on a night-time flight.
Dec. 30, 2024 -
Search for cause underway the day after air disaster
Search for remains continues on day after crash; Seoul to inspect all Boeing 737-800 planes MUAN, South Jeolla Province/ SEOUL -- The Transport Ministry said Monday it would carry out all-out safety inspections of all Boeing 737-800 model airplanes operated by six South Korean air carriers, in response to the fatal plane crash that killed 179 people at Muan International Airport in Muan-gun, South Jeolla Province, on Sunday. The twin-engine Boeing 737-800 model accounts for nearly 25 percent of
Dec. 30, 2024 -
Between despair and hope: A December that tested Korea's limits
As tumultuous December and 2024 draw to an end, fractures, quiet solidarity, hard-earned hope endure December in South Korea felt like an endless night: no festive lights, no holiday cheer, only a suffocating string of crises that kept piling on. The final punch to the gut came on Dec. 29, when Jeju Air flight 7C 2216 crashed at Muan International Airport in South Jeolla Province, claiming 179 lives. “It felt like one heavy blow after another,” says 27-year-old social activist Lee Yeon-joo. “The
Dec. 30, 2024 -
Concrete wall suspected of worsening plane damage
A rare concrete wall at the end of the runway of Muan International Airport is suspected to have exacerbated damage to the Jeju Air flight that crash-landed Sunday and claimed 179 lives. The Boeing 737-800 airplane, departing from Bangkok, attempted a belly landing in the morning at the airport, apparently after suffering multiple malfunctions concerning its engines and landing gear. The plane skidded and collided with the nearly 2-meter-tall concrete wall supporting several “localizers,” metal
Dec. 30, 2024 -
World leaders mourn tragic plane crash
World leaders have expressed profound sorrow and extended heartfelt condolences following a devastating plane crash in Korea that claimed 179 lives, including two Thai nationals. “Jill and I are deeply saddened to learn of the loss of life that occurred as a result of the Jeju Airlines accident in Muan, Republic of Korea,” US President Joe Biden said in a statement released Sunday, referring to South Korea by its official name. “As close allies, the American people share deep bonds of friendship
Dec. 30, 2024