Duck DNA in engines of crashed SoKor plane
SEOUL—Both engines of the Jeju Air plane that crashed last month contained duck remains, according to a preliminary report on Monday, with authorities still trying to determine what caused the deadliest air disaster on South Korean soil.
The six-page report released by South Korean authorities a month after the crash said both engines of the Boeing 737-800 jet contained DNA from Baikal Teals, a type of migratory duck that flies to South Korea for winter in huge flocks.
But the report provided no initial conclusions about what may have caused the plane to land without its landing gear deployed, and why flight data recorders stopped recording in the final four minutes of the flight.
The Jeju Air flight from Bangkok on Dec. 29 overshot Muan Airport’s runway as it made an emergency belly landing and crashed into an embankment containing navigation equipment, called localizers, killing all but two of the 181 people and crew members on board.
The investigation will tear down the engines, examine components in depth, analyze in-flight and air traffic control data, and investigate the embankment, localizers and evidence of bird strike, the report said about its next steps.
“These all-out investigation activities aim to determine the accurate cause of the accident,” it said.
