Early data from the cockpit voice recorder is being converted into audio format, while efforts to retrieve data from the damaged flight data recorder continue. Investigators hope these findings will shed light on the cause of the crash, which may have been triggered by a mechanical failure, including issues with the aircraft’s landing gear.
BY PC Bureau
Investigators in South Korea have begun analyzing data from the black boxes recovered from the Jeju Air plane that crashed shortly after landing on Sunday, resulting in the deaths of 179 out of the 181 people on board.
SEOUL (@CNN) — These are the voice & data recorders from South Korea’s doomed Jeju Air Flight 2216.
Top image is the voice recorder. The below 2 photos are the data recorder without the connector, South Korea’s transportation ministry said.
NTSB will now **lead** the data… pic.twitter.com/4gNf5TkIWp
— Mike Valerio (@ValerioCNN) January 1, 2025
The country’s Deputy Minister for Civil Aviation, Joo Jong-wan, confirmed that initial data had been retrieved from the Boeing 737-800’s cockpit voice recorder. Efforts are underway to convert the data into audio format, which could provide vital insights into the final communications between the pilots before the crash.
Authorities hope the data from the cockpit voice recorder, along with the flight data recorder, will shed light on what led to the crash. Preliminary reports suggest that the aircraft’s landing gear failed to deploy, prompting the pilot to attempt a landing. The plane, returning from Thailand with 175 passengers and six crew members, issued a mayday call before belly-landing on the runway at Muan International Airport.
The plane skidded across the runway before hitting a barrier and bursting into flames. Only two flight attendants survived, having been pulled from the wreckage at the rear of the aircraft.
<blockquote class=”twitter-tweet”><p lang=”en” dir=”ltr”>Heartbreaking: Among the victims of the Jeju Air crash, an 80-year-old man was celebrating his birthday with 9 family members. All of them lost their lives, reported Chosun Daily.<br>Back home in Yeonggwang, the family's dog waits at the door, unaware they will never return. 💔 <a href=”https://t.co/CNcKFs2eUH”>pic.twitter.com/CNcKFs2eUH</a></p>— Shanghai Daily (@shanghaidaily) <a href=”https://twitter.com/shanghaidaily/status/1873968782978539578?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>December 31, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src=”https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js” charset=”utf-8″></script>
Joo mentioned that while the cockpit voice recorder data has been partially retrieved, the flight data recorder was found with a missing connector, delaying its extraction. South Korea’s transport ministry has also announced plans to send the flight data recorder to the United States for further analysis.
The black boxes, designed to withstand high-impact crashes and fires, are key to understanding the cause of the disaster. Theories about the crash include potential bird strikes and mechanical failures, with local media reporting that the landing gear deployed successfully on the first landing attempt but failed during the second.
South Korean authorities have identified all victims, but the process of releasing the bodies has been slow due to the severity of the crash. The remains are being transferred to a temporary morgue at Muan Airport for families to make funeral arrangements. The delay in identification has frustrated grieving relatives who have been at the airport for days.
The investigation has also focused on a concrete barrier at the end of the runway, which is believed to have contributed to the severity of the crash. Many victims are thought to have died when the plane collided with the barrier at high speed, causing the fuselage to break apart and ignite.
As the nation mourns, many New Year’s Eve celebrations were canceled or subdued, and South Korea entered the third day of a seven-day mourning period. Families of the victims gathered at Muan Airport to pay their respects, with religious and volunteer groups providing support during this difficult time.
