South Korea plane crash latest: All but two presumed dead as airplane carrying 181 crashes at Muan airport

A passenger plane with 181 people on board erupted in flames after veering off the runway and crashing into a wall at an airport in Muan, South Korea, on Sunday, with authorities indicating that all but two are likely dead.

Yonhap news agency, citing firefighting authorities reported that, except for the two rescued, all the missing passengers are presumed dead and that search efforts have now shifted to recovering the bodies.

Preliminary reports suggested that the Jeju Air passenger plane’s front landing gear failed to deploy as the plane with 181 people aboard was seen skidding across the airstrip with its landing gear closed at the Muan airport, 290km south of the capital Seoul.

It said the fire at the site of the plane collision was almost doused but the emergency team was still trying to rescue people from inside the plane.

A passenger and one crew member have been rescued from the tail of the plane and are reported to have sustained mid to severe level injuries. The agency said it has deployed 32 fire trucks and several helicopters to contain the fire.

Boeing offers condolences after deadly South Korea airliner crash

05:24 , Arpan Rai

Boeing offered condolences and said it is in touch with South Korea’s Jeju Air after the deadly crash of an airliner this morning.

The crash involved a Boeing-made 737-800, according to Jeju Air.

Death toll rises to 85 as plane veers off runway in South Korea

05:23 , Arpan Rai

Visuals of the crash showed the plane landing on its belly, leaving a trail of grey smoke as the landing gear remained shut. The plane, engulfed in thick pillows of black smoke, collided head-on with a concrete wall at the end of the strip.

The time of the crash was confirmed as 9.03am local time, the transport ministry said.

Emergency officials have said they are examining the cause of the fire as initial signs showed the plane’s landing gear likely malfunctioned.

The plane was returning from Bangkok and included two Thai nationals, officials from the transport ministry said.

Death toll rises to 85 as plane veers off runway in South Korea

Two rescued in Jeju Air plane crash

05:15 , Arpan Rai

Two crew members, a man and a woman, were rescued from the tail section of the burning plane, Muan fire chief Lee Jung-hyun told a briefing. The fire was extinguished by 1pm, Mr Lee said.

“Only the tail part retains a little bit of shape, and the rest of (the plane) looks almost impossible to recognise,” he said.

Yonhap news agency cited a fire official as saying most of 175 passengers and six crew were presumed dead.

Authorities have switched from rescue to recovery operations and because of the force of the impact, are searching nearby areas for bodies possibly thrown from the plane, the official added.

The two crew were being treated at hospitals with medium to severe injuries, said the head of the local public health centre.

At least 85 feared dead in South Korea plane crash

05:12 , Arpan Rai

At least 85 people were killed when an airliner landed without wheels, veering off the runway and erupting in a fireball as it slammed into a wall at South Korea‘s Muan International Airport this morning, the national fire agency said.

Jeju Air flight 7C2216, arriving from the Thai capital Bangkok with 181 people on board, was attempting to land shortly after 9am (0000 GMT) at the airport in the south of the country, South Korea‘s transport ministry said.

The ministry also confirmed the casualties in the deadliest air accident involving a South Korean airline in nearly three decades.

04:57 , Arpan Rai

Good morning, welcome to our coverage of the South Korea plane crash on Sunday, 29 December 2024.