179 lives were lost Sunday after a JeJu Air passenger jet crash-landed at a South Korean airport. Only two people survived. Now, officials are working to figure out the cause.
Footage showed the flight skidding down the runway, its landing gear seemingly not deployed. It then hit a fence, resulting in a fiery crash.
“It’s always heartbreak, because you know that these are people with families, people who are deeply loved,” said Kristy Kiernan, associate director of the Boeing Center for Aviation and Aerospace Safety at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. The institute has received a philanthropic gift from Boeing, but it has no other connection to the company.
The plane’s flight data and cockpit audio recorders have been recovered, but what caused the crash is still unclear. Kiernan said the timing on what happens next is key.
“So, the first and most important thing is to gather the evidence that could be perishable, so anything like fuel samples or evidence of icing, switch positions, things that that can be disturbed by the environment,” said Kiernan.
South Korean fire officials said a bird strike or bad weather conditions could be the culprit.
“Bird strikes are not super uncommon,” said Kiernan. “But a bird strike that results in significant damage is extremely uncommon. A bird strike that would result in exactly that scenario--there's so much more information that we need before we could make that determination.”
Korean officials are also looking into whether the fence the plane hit could have been made with lighter material that could break more easily on impact. They are also investigating possible communication issues between the pilot and ground control.
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The National Transportation Safety Board and Boeing, which manufactured the plane, are expected to assist Korean authorities with the investigation, which could take months to conclude.
“These do take time,” said Kiernan. “We will find the cause, and the aviation industry is extremely effective in correcting the things that need to be corrected.”
Families of those killed have been camped out at the airport, waiting for their loved ones remains to be returned to them and demanding answers. Officials are collecting DNA and using fingerprints to help identify some victims, as their bodies are severely damaged.
The identification process is expected to take days, leading to frustration amongst the grieving families.
"What we have to demand from the government is to bring in more experts,” said Park Han-Shin, a relative of one of the victims. “We have wanted (the government) to recover our families 100% or at least 80% as soon as possible."
