The post UPDATE: Jeju Air offices and Muan International Airport raided by SoKor authorities appeared first on TD (Travel Daily Media) Travel Daily Media.
(Current as of 3:41pm, BKK time) South Korean authorities are currently conducting search-and-seizure operations to aid the ongoing investigation into the deadly Jeju Air crash on Sunday, 29th December.
Following the issuance of a search warrant, police operatives raided Jeju Air’s corporate office in Seoul as well as its satellite offices in other locations within the country.
Certain areas of the Muan International Airport on whose runway the crash occurred were also raided, and Jeju Air records at the said airport have been taken in for further study.
Aside from local law enforcement, investigators include representatives from the United States and aircraft manufacturer Boeing.
As of press time, several airline executives have already been charged with professional negligence resulting in death, as only two out of the 181 people on board survived the crash.
Foreign expert weighs in
Called in to offer his opinion, Australian aviation expert Ron Bartsch questioned the possibility of bird strike being the only reason behind the crash, warning that something more sinister could be at its root, though this remains speculative.
Bartsch said: “I suspect that the initial reports that have indicated that bird strike or weather may have been a contributing factor. But, to me, that’s pretty unlikely that a bird strike alone would be sufficient to bring down an aircraft or to foresee landing gear not being able to be operative.”
The expert pointed out how the pilot would have known about the high risk of landing without reverse thrust or flaps available to slow the aircraft down.
According to current information, the plane also made 13 flights within 48 hours prior to the tragedy, and all of its three landing gears malfunctioned on Sunday.
Turning up no issues
It should be noted, however, that no issues were said to have been found during the standard pre-flight inspection on the plane before it took off from Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport.
Jeju Air chief executive Kim Yi-bae alleges that there were no specific or unusual issues during the maintenance process of the aircraft prior to Sunday’s disaster, adding that if the maintenance team didn’t sign off on its safety, it would not have been cleared. for takeoff.
He also said that Jeju Air pilots are trained to regulation standards, and that the company had two full flight simulators.
Kim added: “As for whether the landing gear functioned properly, that is directly related to the accident investigation, and we are not in a position to know at this time.”
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