South Korea is set to release a preliminary report on the catastrophic crash of Jeju Air flight 7C2216 by January 27. The Boeing 737-800 met its tragic fate on December 29, marking the deadliest air disaster on South Korean soil, with 179 lives claimed. The aircraft was attempting a go-around when it collided with an embankment at Muan International Airport, igniting into flames and leaving only two survivors among the crew in the tail section.
The pilots had declared a mayday at 8:58:56 am, citing a bird strike as the cause of their distress. Airport CCTV footage corroborated this, as it captured the plane encountering birds during its go-around maneuver. However, the exact moment of impact remains unclear due to the distance of the surveillance cameras. Inspectors found duck feathers and blood in both GE Aerospace engines, underscoring the severity of the bird strike.
Despite the pilots' efforts to manage the situation, the jet ultimately crashed at 9:02:57 am. Experts have asserted that the embankment, where the aircraft met its doom, likely exacerbated the disaster's lethality. In response, authorities plan to remove this hazardous structure from Muan International Airport.
The investigation into this tragedy is a collaborative effort involving experts from the US National Transportation Safety Board and France's Bureau of Enquiry and Analysis for Civil Aviation Safety. Their findings will form part of the preliminary report, which will be submitted to the International Civil Aviation Organization, as well as aviation authorities in the United States, France, and Thailand.
The ill-fated flight 7C2216 was en route from Bangkok to Muan International Airport when disaster struck. As the aviation world awaits the preliminary findings, there is hope that the report will shed light on the circumstances leading up to this unprecedented calamity.
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