After the devastating plane accident in South Korea that left 179 dead, investigators are now focusing on the concrete wall where the Boeing plane crashed. Are there so many deaths because of her?
After the plane accident in Muan with 179 deaths, investigators in South Korea are continuing to search for the cause of the accident. Experts are focusing on the wall around 250 meters behind the runway where the plane of flight 7C2216 of the South Korean low-cost airline Jeju Air crashed last Sunday. The question is whether the concrete plant could have contributed to the high number of deaths.
The Boeing 737-800 left the runway during an attempted “belly landing” without the landing gear extended, crashed into the wall and burst into flames.
Antenna system embedded in the wall
An antenna system necessary for landing was attached to the concrete wall surrounded by earth and supports pilots during the approach. At many airports, these antennas look like a series of red poles. However, it is unclear why this four-meter-high structure in Muan was surrounded by a wall. This is reported by the dpa news agency.
The closure of the runway at the airport in the southwest of the country has been extended until January 7th to allow further investigation of the accident site. In addition to Korean experts, there are also representatives of the US aircraft manufacturer Boeing and the US authority NTSB, which investigates aviation accidents.
John Cox, a former pilot who investigates aircraft accidents in the United States, said the concrete wall amazed him most. “Because the plane could have stopped, people could have left the plane – if he wasn't there.”
Investigators take a picture of the crash site at Muan International Airport.
wall international Standards?
The antennas in signal colors would have to be as flexible as a straw in order to break in the event of an impact, according to expert Song Byeong Heum on the South Korean television station KBS. Even if they had wanted to position the antennas higher, they wouldn't have had to build a concrete wall around them, a pilot told the Yonhap news agency.
Other aviation experts speculated that the construction in Muan did not meet international standards. According to Yonhap News Agency, the airport justified that the increase was necessary for the system to function properly. The Ministry of Transport argued that other airports in South Korea also had a similar concrete structure.
As the AFP news agency reported, the regulations for a concrete wall are being reviewed. When asked whether the use of concrete was permitted at this point of the airport, airport policy director general Kim Hong Rak said the government would “review the relevant regulations and their application.”
One of two flight recorders damaged
The recovery teams have already found the two flight recorders. The one with the voice recordings from the cockpit was in relatively good condition, the Yonhap news agency reported. The second memory, with the flight data, was therefore damaged. The experts now have to check how they can get the data. It will therefore take some time until results are available.
After the accident, the maintenance records of all aircraft of national airlines, the Boeing 737-800, which is popular with low-cost airlines, were also ordered to be checked. According to the Ministry of Transport, a corresponding investigation affected six airlines. According to Yonhap news agency, the South Korean armed forces also checked machines of a similar type in their fleets.
The government also announced that it would inspect all Boeing aircraft of the same design in the country with a view to their landing gear.
The exact course of the accident is unclear
According to the Ministry of Transport, investigators have so far confirmed the identities of 174 of the 179 passengers killed in the accident. The authorities have already sent the first bodies for burial. Acting South Korean President Choi Sang Mok attended a memorial service for the victims in Seoul.
In addition to two Thai citizens, there were only Koreans on board the Boeing 737-800. Only two crew members survived the crash landing.
The Muan incident is considered the most devastating aircraft accident on South Korean soil to date. The authorities suspect that the cause of the accident was a bird strike shortly before landing. The tower had initially warned against such a collision with birds. Immediately afterwards, the pilots themselves reported a bird strike via a Mayday emergency call. It is still unclear how this collision could damage the undercarriage.
With information from Katharina von Tschurtschenthaler, NDR
