Plane veers off airport runway in South Korea and crashes, killing at least 177: reports
A Jeju Air flight skidded off a runway in South Korea and collided with a concrete fence, killing at least 176 people, the Associated Press reported, citing the country’s National Fire Agency (NFA).
The Yonhap News Agency attributed the devastating crash, one of the worst in the country’s history, to malfunctioning landing gear.
Jeju Air, a low-cost airline in South Korea, was carrying 175 passengers and six crew members in the Boeing 737-800 when the incident occurred Sunday morning local time at Muan International Airport in Muan County, South Jeolla Province, roughly 180 miles south of Seoul.
At least 176 people — 83 women, 82 men and 11 others whose genders weren’t immediately identifiable — died in the fire, the fire agency said.
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According to the NFA, emergency workers rescued two people, both crew members who were conscious. Three people remained missing about nine hours after the incident.
The plane landed at 9:07 a.m. local time at the airport when the incident happened.
According to the Associated Press, the passenger plane slammed into a concrete fence on the runway after its front landing gear failed to deploy.
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The plane was flying back to South Korea from Thailand, the Yonhap News Agency reported.
Photos shared by local media showed smoke billowing out of the plane.
A senior Transport Ministry official said that the flight data recorder from the plane’s black box was retrieved and that crews were still searching for the cockpit voice recording device, according to the AP.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.