The South Korean government is set to release a preliminary report on the deadly Jeju Air plane crash that occurred on December 29th, which claimed 179 lives.
The investigation focuses on a potential bird strike as a contributing factor to the tragic incident at Muan International Airport and its report will be sent to the International Civil Aviation Organization and the United States, France and Thailand, according to the ministry.
So far, Seoul has been cooperating with investigators from the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board and France’s Bureau of Enquiry and Analysis for Civil Aviation Safety.
It will take several months to analyse and verify flight data and cockpit voice recordings, which stopped recording four minutes and seven seconds before the tragic Jeju air crash, and communication recordings with the control tower, the ministry revealed.
At 08:58:11 a.m on December 29., the pilots discussed birds flying under the Boeing 737-800, then declared mayday at 08:58:56, reporting a bird strike while the plane was on a go-around, the statement revealed. Airport CCTV footage also showed the plane making “contact” with birds during the go-around.
The ministry had previously said the pilots issued the distress signal due to bird strikes before going around.
The Jeju Air crash 7C2216 crashed at 9:02:57 a.m., slamming into an embankment and bursting into flames that killed every single person aboard except for two crew members in the tail section.
The surveillance footage was also taken from too far away to see if there was a spark from the bird strike but it “confirmed the plane making contact with birds, though the exact time is unclear,” a ministry official informed Reuters.
The ministry further revealed that duck feathers and blood were found in both of the aircraft’s GE Aerospace engines, adding that it would conduct a separate analysis of the role of the concrete embankment that supported navigation antennas called “localisers”.
Finally, the ministry said on Wednesday that it will be removing the embankment, which experts have said was likely what made the disaster more deadly.
