Dozens dead after South Korean jet crash-lands at airport

A severe plane crash occurred in South Korea, involving an aircraft carrying 181 people that experienced an accident upon landing, with only two believed to have survived. This Jeju Air flight 7C 2216, which departed from Bangkok with 175 passengers and 6 crew members, crashed at Muan International Airport.

The aircraft crashed during a hard landing at the southwestern South Korean airport, with the fuselage skidding along the runway before catching fire, resulting in numerous casualties. Rescue workers pulled two survivors, both crew members, from the crash site but stated that the chances of finding more survivors were slim. The accident occurred just after 9 a.m. on Sunday at the airport in Muan County.

According to official sources, the cause of the accident was a landing gear malfunction. Video footage of Sunday's crash aired by several South Korean news outlets showed the aircraft belly-landing at high speed, hitting an embankment, and then exploding into flames. The video did not show the front or rear landing gear of the plane, and smoke was seen billowing from the tail of the skidding aircraft. Firefighters later extinguished the flames on the wreckage with water cannons, and the aircraft was identified on the flight tracking website FlightAware as a Boeing 737-800.

Rescue teams stated that the two survivors were both crew members, one male and one female. The South Korean Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport stated that there were two Thai citizens among the passengers and that officials from the National Accident Investigation Committee had arrived on the scene to investigate the cause of the accident. In a briefing, the Ministry said that rescue workers would search for the "black box" flight data recorder after recovering the remains of the victims. The recorder provides crucial information for aviation safety investigators to analyze the circumstances after an accident.

The department also stated that it had mobilized more than 700 personnel, including police, military, and coast guard, to participate in the on-site rescue efforts. South Korea's acting president declared the site of Sunday's plane crash a special disaster zone and pledged a full investigation into the cause of the deadly disaster. "We will concentrate all resources on rescue efforts and provide support to the victims. All necessary resources are being mobilized, and the area has been declared a special disaster zone," said Choi Sang-mok in a statement.

Boeing expressed its condolences to those who lost loved ones in the accident. “We are in contact with Jeju Air regarding flight 2216 and stand ready to support them,” Boeing said in a brief statement posted on its X account. Multiple parts of the aircraft were scattered on the runway, and debris was also found around the airport. The CEO of Jeju Air stated that there were "no signs of any problems" with the aircraft before Sunday's accident.

"At the moment, it is difficult to determine the cause of the accident, and we must await the official investigation results from the relevant government agencies," said Kim Eui-bae at a press conference at the airport. An aviation journalist stated that Sunday's crash was "very puzzling," given the good safety record of both the aircraft and the airline, as well as the good flying conditions. Geoffrey Thomas, editor of Airlineratings.com, told CNN's Paula Newton that the Boeing 737-800 is one of the most widely used aircraft in the world, with each plane flying about four to five times a day.