Jeju Air: Two days, two incidents, same type of plane, is this a coincidence?

After the horrific tragedy that claimed the lives of 179 people in Muan on December 29, Jeju Air continued with another worrying incident. Another plane, the same Boeing 737-800 model as the crashed plane, had to make an emergency landing due to a landing gear problem.

On the morning of December 30, Jeju Air flight 7C101 departed from Gimpo Airport, Seoul, bound for Jeju. However, shortly after takeoff at 6:37 a.m., the crew discovered a landing gear problem and immediately decided to return to Gimpo Airport to ensure the safety of passengers. At 7:25 a.m. the same day, the plane landed safely in Gimpo with all 161 passengers uninjured.

It is worth noting that the plane involved in the accident was a Boeing 737-800, the same type as the plane that crashed on December 29 in Muan. This situation raises big questions about the root cause of the accident, especially since both incidents involved landing gear, an essential part that ensures safety during flights.

Specifically, on December 29, a Jeju Air Boeing 737-800 aircraft encountered a serious problem while landing at Muan Airport. After experiencing problems with the landing gear system and colliding with a bird, the aircraft skidded off the runway, caught fire and crashed into the airport wall.

The tragic incident left 179 people dead, with only two survivors, a passenger and a crew member, both of whom are currently being treated in hospital. South Korean authorities confirmed that the incident occurred after a failed landing attempt, forcing the plane to make an emergency landing.

According to initial information, all three landing gears of the plane were not working properly, leading to a dangerous situation. This condition, combined with the collision with a bird during landing, increased the severity of the incident. Aviation experts believe that if the landing gear had not failed, the collision with the bird might not have had such serious consequences.

In the immediate aftermath of the December 30 incident, questions have been raised about the connection between the landing gear failure on Flight 7C101 and the Muan tragedy. Jeju Air has insisted that the plane that crashed today showed no signs of damage prior to takeoff. However, the fact that two incidents occurred consecutively with the same type of aircraft within a short period of time has led many to suspect a more serious problem involving the Boeing 737-800, especially the landing gear system.

Jeju Air currently operates 39 Boeing 737-800s in its fleet of 41, raising concerns that a major airline has suffered two serious incidents in quick succession with the same aircraft. Is this a systemic technical problem or just an unfortunate coincidence?

Jeju Air said it had notified passengers of the incident and transferred them to an alternative aircraft after Flight 7C101 returned to Gimpo. The airline also said it would work with authorities to investigate the cause and resolve the issue.

South Korean authorities said they are conducting a thorough investigation into the causes of the unfortunate incident in Muan and the landing gear failure that occurred on December 30. Experts said that in addition to checking the landing gear system, it is also necessary to consider whether there are any problems with the control system or other factors to ensure the safety of future flights.

These back-to-back incidents are raising concerns about aviation safety. In particular, the coincidence of the aircraft type and the landing gear failure cannot be a coincidence. A full, transparent investigation is needed to determine the true cause of these incidents and ensure the safety of passengers in the future. Have airlines, especially Jeju Air, done enough to protect passengers and face the risk of flight safety?

Jeju Air "crisis": Thousands of tickets canceled, "lost money and suffered" after the disaster! Nguyễn Khanh16:16:54 31/12/2024The horrific air accident killed 179 people and had serious consequences for Jeju Air, which had to cancel 68,000 bookings, equivalent to more than 300 flights, within 24 hours of the tragedy.