A preliminary report on last month’s fatal plane crash reveals that the aircraft’s flight data and cockpit voice recorders ceased functioning four minutes before impact, resulting in the loss of 179 lives. This confirms earlier statements from South Korea’s Transportation Ministry.
The South Korean Aviation and Railway Accident Investigation Board’s Monday report confirms the recorders’ malfunction, despite their subsequent shipment to the U.S. for analysis due to missing data. The reason for the recording failure remains undetermined.
The investigation also uncovered evidence of bird strikes—feathers and blood—in both engines. Analysis identified the birds as Baikal teals.
The Boeing 737-800 veered off the runway on December 29th, 2024, after a landing gear failure, crashing into a structure and catching fire. Only two of the 181 passengers survived; all but two victims were South Korean nationals.
Air traffic controllers alerted the pilots to potential bird strikes two minutes before a distress call indicating a bird strike, prompting an emergency landing attempt. The pilots also reported seeing birds approaching the runway, and security footage captured the plane’s proximity to birds during a previous landing attempt.
Further investigation will involve disassembling the engines, a detailed component examination, black box and air traffic control data analysis, and examination of the embankment, localizer, and bird strike evidence to determine the crash cause.
The report has been shared with the International Civil Aviation Organization, Thailand, the U.S., and France, reflecting the aircraft’s U.S. manufacture and international implications.