179 dead in South Korea's worst plane crash

SEOUL: A Jeju Air plane carrying 181 people from Thailand to South Korea crashed on arrival Sunday, smashing into a barrier and bursting into flames, killing everyone aboard except for two flight attendants plucked from the wreckage. 

"Of the 179 dead, 65 have been identified," the fire agency said of the crash at Muan International Airport, which two members of the crew survived.

South Korea's acting President Choi Sang-mok, in an emergency meeting on Sunday evening, declared a national mourning period until January 4 over the plane crash.

A bird strike and adverse weather conditions were cited by authorities as likely causes of the crash that flung passengers out of the plane and left it "almost completely destroyed", according to fire officials.

Video showed the Jeju Air plane from Bangkok landing on its belly at Muan International Airport, skidding off the runway as smoke streamed out from the engines, before crashing into a wall and exploding in flames.

"Passengers were ejected from the aircraft after it collided with the wall, leaving little chance of survival," a local fire official told families at a briefing, according to a statement released by the fire brigade.

"The plane is almost completely destroyed, and identifying the deceased is proving difficult. The process is taking time as we locate and recover the remains," he was quoted as saying.

An AFP photographer saw the burned-out wreckage of the Jeju Air Boeing 737-800 aircraft on the runway at Muan — some 288 kilometres southwest of Seoul — as firefighters and emergency vehicles worked nearby.

The accident took place in a matter of minutes from 9:03am on Sunday during the landing of Jeju Air Flight 2216, the Ministry of Land said, with 175 passengers, including two Thai nationals, and six crew onboard.

"It took approximately three minutes from the control tower's mention of a bird strike warning to the aircraft's attempt to land on the runway again," it said.

Two minutes before the crash, the pilot issued a Mayday call, it added.

When asked if the accident happened due to the runway being too short — video shows the plane coming off the tarmac and hitting a wall — the official said this was likely not a factor.

"The runway is 2,800 metres long, and similar-sized aircraft have been operating on it without issues," they said.

"It is unlikely that the accident was caused by the length of the runway."

Chief of Muan fire-station Lee Jeong-hyun said during a briefing that the cause was "presumed to be a bird strike combined with adverse weather conditions".

"However, the exact cause will be announced following a joint investigation," Lee said.

Low-cost carrier Jeju Air apologised and vowed to do all it could to help.

"We sincerely apologise for causing concern," the airline said in a statement posted on its social media channels.

Boeing said in a statement that it was in touch with Jeju Air and stood "ready to support them".

Reacting to the unfortunate incident, Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed grief over the loss of lives.

"Deeply saddened to learn about the tragic plane crash at Muan International Airport in Korea resulting in the loss of so many precious lives. In this hour of grief, our thoughts and prayers are with the bereaved families and with the people and Government of the Republic of Korea," said the premier in a post on X.

Furthermore, President Asif Ali Zardari also expressed condolences with the people and the government of South Korea and conveyed sympathies with the bereaved families, read the press release issued by the President Secretariat.