Pilots are to blame for South Korea plane crash that killed 179 when aircraft slammed into concrete wall and burst into flames, report finds
Tragic errors by the pilots of South Korea airliner were the direct cause of the devastating crash that killed 179 people last December, according to a bombshell report by investigators.
The Jeju Air Boeing 737 was moments from landing at the coastal Muan Airport after a flight from Bangkok on December 29 when it struck a flock of birds – believed to be Baikal teal ducks – which sent one its engines into failure.
In a horrifying twist, investigators say the pilots then shut down the wrong engine, sealing the fate of those on board.
Instead of switching off the damaged engine, the crew mistakenly cut power the only one that was still functioning. ‘A pilot may have mistakenly turned off the engine,’ investigators said.
The aircraft, now critically compromised, continued its botched descent at dangerously high speed, with the landing gear still retracted.
Moments later, the plane careened off the runway, slammed into a reinforced embankment, and erupted into a fireball.
Only two of the cabin crew members seated at the rear survived the inferno.
In a chaotic press conference on Saturday, grieving members of the victims stormed the room, accusing officials of scapegoating the pilots. ‘They’ve just blamed it all on the pilots’ a man shouted.
The Jeju Air Boeing 737 was moments from landing at the coastal Muan Airport after a flight from Bangkok on December 29 when it struck a flock of birds
Instead of switching off the damaged engine, the crew mistakenly cut power the only one that was still functioning. ‘A pilot may have mistakenly turned off the engine,’ investigators said
Only two of the cabin crew members seated at the rear survived the inferno
Amid the uproar, investigators hastily retrieved copies of the interim findings from journalists, claiming the report was not yet officially released.
Despite the backlash, investigators stood by their conclusion – that there was no mechanical fault with the Boeing aircraft.
Instead, a catalogue of cockpit errors led to South Korea’s worst aviation disaster in decades.
‘The pilot should have turned off the right engine, which was severely damaged by the bird strike, but he turned off the left engine, which was spinning, and the black box and power went out,’ an official told South Korea’s MBN television news.
Disturbingly, the final moments of the flight remain particularly shrouded in mystery.
Power to the aircraft’s flight data and voice recorders cut out for four minutes before the crash, severely hampering the investigation.
Experts also say the pilots violated safety protocol following the bird strike, climbing abruptly and executing a risky turnaround before attempting an unorthodox landing – on the same runway but from the opposite direction.
Aviation professionals have pointed out chilling similarities to the 1989 Kegworth crash in the UK, where a British Midland 737 went down after pilots also shut off the wrong engine.
That disaster claimed 47 lives.
The plane careened off the runway, slammed into a reinforced embankment, and erupted into a fireball
A catalogue of cockpit errors led to South Korea’s worst aviation disaster in decades
South Korean rescue team members check near the wreckage of a passenger plane at Muan International Airport on December 29, 2024 in Muan-gun, South Korea
The wreckage of the Jeju Air aircraft that went off the runway and crashed at Muan International Airport lies near a concrete structure it crashed into, in Muan, South Korea, December 30, 2024
An unverified video grab reportedly of the Jeju Air plane shows a burst of fire coming out of the jet’s right engine supposedly showing the moment the bird struck
Families of the Muan victims are now demanding accountability and transparency.
Kim Yu-Jin, head of the bereaved families group, deemed the report ‘unconvincing’ and warned that the way officials handle the findings could affect compensation for grieving loved ones.
‘When investigators take a position, it should be accompanied by documents that support their position and convince the bereaved family that their conclusions are inevitable,’ she said. ‘We were only given their conclusions.
She added: ‘We have repeatedly asked them to be careful about these disclosures because the way that the results of the investigation are communicated can have an impact on the compensation that families receive.’
