Jeju Air Crash: Pilots Shut Wrong Engine After Bird Strike

Photo: Reuters

In December last year, a terrible plane crash happened in South Korea. A Jeju Air flight, which is a South Korean airline, crashed while landing at Muan International Airport. Almost everyone on board died in this accident. Out of 181 passengers and crew members, only two people survived. This was the deadliest air disaster on South Korean land.

What Happened During The Flight?

On December 29, the Jeju Air plane, which was a Boeing 737-800, was coming from Bangkok to Muan Airport. Just before it was going to land, the plane hit some birds. This is called a bird strike. Birds can damage the engines of a plane when they get sucked into them.

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Investigation Finds Pilots’ Mistake

After the crash, South Korea started an investigation to find out what caused this tragedy. The investigation team found clear proof that the pilots made a mistake. A source, who knows about the investigation, said that the pilots shut off the wrong engine after the bird strike.

How Did They Find This Out?

The team checked the cockpit voice recorder, computer data, and even the physical engine switch from the wreckage. All these showed that the pilots turned off the left engine. But actually, it was the right engine that was badly damaged by the bird strike.

Why Did The Pilots Do This?

When a plane’s engine gets damaged by birds, pilots are trained to shut down the damaged engine and continue flying with the other engine. But in this case, the pilots turned off the less damaged engine and kept the more damaged engine running. This caused the plane to lose power, leading to the crash.

No Problem In Engines Before Bird Strike

Another government source said that when the investigators checked the engines, they found no defects before the bird strike happened. This means the engines were working fine before the birds hit them.

Crash Details

The Jeju Air flight overshot the runway while landing. The plane tried to make an emergency belly landing but crashed into an embankment that had navigation equipment. Because of this crash, the plane caught fire and partly exploded. This is why so many people died in the accident.

Families Were Told About The Mistake

Recently, the investigation team told the families of the victims about this mistake in a private briefing. A third source who was present there said that the investigators told them that the right engine was more badly damaged but pilots turned off the left engine instead.

Families And Pilots’ Union React

South Korean media reported this news widely. However, families of the victims were very upset. They felt that the report was blaming only the pilots without checking other reasons for the crash. The lawyers representing the families said that the investigation should also look into other factors that may have caused the accident.

Cancelled Press Conference

The investigation team had planned to release this information to the media but cancelled the press conference. This was done after the victims’ families objected to the report being published without proper examination of all facts.

Pilots’ Union Defends The Pilots

The pilots’ union also said that the investigators were trying to make the pilots “scapegoats”. A scapegoat means someone who is blamed for something even when there are other reasons. The union said that there were bird remains found in both engines, so it was not true that there was no problem in the left engine.

They also said that the investigation should prove with scientific facts whether the plane could have landed safely even if only the left engine was working.

Crash Investigation Is Complex

Experts say that most plane crashes happen due to many reasons combined, not just one mistake. The pilots’ union said that air accidents are complex and the investigation should find out all reasons and not just blame the pilots.

Final Report Expected

According to international rules, a final report on any air crash is released within a year of the accident. A preliminary report was already released in January this year. That report said that duck remains were found in both engines but did not explain how much damage each engine had.

Families Want Full Truth

The families of the people who died in this crash want the full truth to come out. Their lawyers said that the report had some sentences which sounded like the investigation had already decided that the pilots were fully at fault. The families want the investigation team to clarify all the facts before blaming anyone.

Investigators Silent On Other Causes

The pilots’ union also said that the investigation was silent about organisational responsibility. This means they did not talk about whether Jeju Air, Boeing, or the airport had any role in this crash.

No Comment From Boeing Or Engine Maker

Boeing, the company that made the plane, said that questions about the crash should be asked to the investigation board. The engine maker, CFM International, which is a company formed by GE and France’s Safran, did not respond to any questions immediately.

Jeju Air Cooperating

Jeju Air said it is fully cooperating with the investigation and is waiting for the official announcement of the results.

This accident was a heartbreaking tragedy that killed 179 people. Investigations are still going on to find the exact reasons. While initial findings show that the pilots shut off the wrong engine, families and the pilots’ union want the investigation to look at all possible causes before blaming anyone. Everyone hopes that the final report will bring out the full truth so that such disasters can be prevented in the future.