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Focus on South Korean Airport Embankment Heightened Following Jeju Air Crash


SEOUL/MUAN COUNTY, SOUTH KOREA—South Korea intensified investigations on Tuesday to determine the cause of its deadliest domestic air accident. Police were working to identify victims, while families of those killed in the crash of a Jeju Air jet demanded more information.

All 175 passengers and four of the six crew members were killed when the Boeing 737–800 belly-landed and skidded off the end of the runway at Muan International Airport on Sunday, sparking a fireball upon impact with an embankment holding navigation equipment.

Comments in the airport’s operating manual, uploaded early in 2024, indicated that the embankment was situated too close to the end of the runway and recommended a review of the location of the equipment during a planned expansion.

A transport ministry official stated that authorities would need to examine the document before responding to inquiries.

Impatience grew among families gathered at the airport on Tuesday as they awaited the release of the bodies of their loved ones.

One grieving relative, Park Han-shin, mentioned that the bodies stored in freezers were ready for transfer to funeral homes, but the process could take some time. He urged others to remain patient.

The National Police Agency was deploying all available resources to hasten the identification of the five remaining unidentified bodies. They were assigning additional personnel and equipment, such as rapid DNA analyzers, for this purpose.

A flight data recorder, also known as the “black box,” recovered from the crash site was missing a crucial connector. Authorities were exploring methods to extract its data. Meanwhile, data retrieval from the cockpit voice recorder had commenced, as reported in briefings by the transport ministry.

Inspections of all 101 B737–800s operated by South Korean airlines were set to conclude by Jan. 3. However, the airport would remain closed until Jan. 7, according to a statement.

Personnel from the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), Federal Aviation Administration, and Boeing, the aircraft manufacturer, had joined the investigations.

Acting President Choi Sang-mok of South Korea had ordered an emergency safety inspection of the country’s entire airline operation on Monday.

Questions About Embankment

Crash investigators were exploring various factors such as bird strikes, disabled control systems on the aircraft, and the pilots’ apparent rush to attempt a landing shortly after declaring an emergency. Fire and transport officials had mentioned this.

Officials had also faced inquiries regarding airport design elements, particularly the substantial dirt-and-concrete embankment near the end of the runway used for navigation equipment.

The plane had collided with the embankment at high speed, leading to a fiery explosion. Bodies and body parts were scattered in surrounding fields, with most of the aircraft disintegrating in flames.

The sun rises behind debris and the wreckage of the aircraft that crashed after it went off the runway, at Muan International Airport, in Muan, South Korea, on Dec. 31, 2024. (Kim Hong-Ji/Reuters)

The sun rises behind debris and the wreckage of the aircraft that crashed after it went off the runway, at Muan International Airport, in Muan, South Korea, on Dec. 31, 2024. Kim Hong-Ji/Reuters

Transport Ministry officials stated that most South Korean airports were constructed based on International Civil Aviation Organization rules recommending a 262-yard runway-end safety area.

However, a domestic law permitted adjustments to the location of some installations in a range that did not “significantly affect” the facility’s performance.

“But we’ll examine whether there are any conflicts in our regulations and conduct an additional review of our airport safety standards,” Kim Hong-rak, director general for airport and air navigation facilities policy, mentioned in a briefing.

The Airport Operations Manual of Muan International Airport indicated that the navigation equipment, known as localizers, was installed too close to the end of the runway, just 218 yards from the crash site.

The document, prepared by Korea Airports Corp. and uploaded on its website, recommended that the airport authority “review securing additional distance during phase two of Muan International Airport’s expansion.”

South Korean officials had previously mentioned that the structure was approximately 273 yards from the end of the runway itself, although a paved apron extended beyond that.

John Cox, chief executive of Safety Operating Systems and a former 737 pilot, stated that the runway design did not adhere to industry best practices, which discourage any hard structure like a berm within at least 330 yards of the runway’s end.

Cox mentioned that video footage showed the plane slowing down and under control when it veered off the runway. The tragedy occurred upon hitting the berm.

Muted Celebrations

Both floors of Muan Airport’s main building remained crowded with grieving relatives on Tuesday evening, awaiting the opening of an altar to pay respects to the deceased. Many others were resting in tents set up at the airport. Various groups were providing food and drinks to religious, social welfare, and volunteer groups.

Mourners pay their respects at a memorial altar for the victims of the Jeju Air plane crash, in front of Seoul City Hall in Seoul on Dec. 31, 2024. (Jung Yeon-je/AFP via Getty Images)

Mourners pay their respects at a memorial altar for the victims of the Jeju Air plane crash, in front of Seoul City Hall in Seoul on Dec. 31, 2024. Jung Yeon-je/AFP via Getty Images

Relatives took turns bowing in front of the makeshift altar, adorned with chrysanthemums and pictures of the deceased, some of them sobbing loudly afterward.

With the nation in mourning over the flight tragedy, New Year’s Eve celebrations across the country were canceled.

Broadcasters such as KBS, MBS, and SBS called off their annual award ceremonies or countdown festivals. The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced that their scheduled annual bell-ringing show for Tuesday would be a somber occasion without performances but with a moment of silence.



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