
A joint investigation began Monday morning to determine the cause of a fire aboard an Air Busan passenger plane at Gimhae International Airport in Busan.
According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport's Aircraft and Railway Accident Investigation Committee, the on-site probe is being carried out by about 20 people, including Korean firefighters, police, and representatives from France's Bureau of Enquiry and Analysis for Civil Aviation Safety.
The French agency's inclusion follows International Civil Aviation Organization regulations that state that the country where the aircraft is manufactured and designed must participate in the investigation.
The Jan. 28 fire broke out at the rear of the aircraft bound for Hong Kong while it was preparing for takeoff. All 176 passengers and crew safely evacuated through the emergency slides, with seven passengers sustaining minor injuries.

The joint inspection will focus on the overhead bin at the rear of the aircraft, which was identified by passengers and crew as the origin of the fire. There is speculation that portable power banks or electronic devices stored in the cabin baggage compartment might have caused the fire.