Evidence of avian impacts was discovered in the engines of the Jeju Air aircraft that crashed in South Korea last month, resulting in the death of all but two of the 181 individuals on board, according to an initial report.
Feathers and traces of bird blood were detected in both engines of the airplane that crashed at Muan International Airport on 29 December, as stated in the report issued by South Korea’s Aviation and Railway Accident Investigation Board.
“The samples were forwarded to specialized agencies for DNA testing, and a national entity confirmed they belonged to Baikal teals,” the report explained, referencing a migratory duck species.
The aircraft’s Boeing 737-800’s two black boxes – the flight data recorder and the cockpit voice recorder – ceased recording approximately four minutes prior to the incident, the report mentioned, which may complicate the investigation into the cause of the tragedy.
Only two crew members positioned toward the rear of the aircraft survived South Korea’s most severe domestic aviation disaster at Muan, located about 180 miles south of Seoul.
The plane was returning from Bangkok, Thailand, when it failed to extend its landing gear, skidding off the runway and colliding with concrete barriers before igniting into flames.
All casualties were South Korean, except for two individuals from Thailand.
This follows the announcement made by South Korean authorities last week regarding the concrete barriers into which the aircraft crashed, which hold antennas that assist in guiding planes during landings, which will be removed from airports nationwide.
Experts previously indicated that the large berm supporting navigation antennas at the end of the runway likely increased the severity of the crash beyond what it might have been otherwise.
Earlier, investigators reported that air traffic controllers alerted the pilots to potential bird strikes two minutes before the aircraft transmitted a distress signal confirming that one had taken place, after which the pilots attempted an emergency landing.
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The initial report indicated that the pilots also observed a flock of birds while approaching the runway at Muan Airport, and that surveillance footage captured the aircraft nearing the birds during a aborted landing attempt.
The transport ministry revealed that the preliminary report has been forwarded to the International Civil Aviation Organization, Thailand, the United States, and France.
It further stated that the airplane was manufactured in the US while its engines were produced in France.
