Government reviews flight safety measures; special inspection of B737-800s extended
The South Korean government held an emergency safety meeting with the chief executive officers of 11 local airlines Friday, with plans to conduct a special safety inspection of flights following the recent deadly Jeju Air crash.
CEOs of Jeju Air, Korean Air, Asiana Airlines and other airlines participated in the meeting hosted by the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters, where enhanced safety measures established after the tragedy were reviewed. The government plans to hold follow-up inspections to see whether the new measures have been implemented.
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transportation has ordered that airlines perform more thorough safety inspections of flights. The CDSCH, the organization heading the pan-government responses to the fatal crash, is also conducting special inspections on Boeing 737-800 aircrafts, the same model as the ill-fated flight 7C 2216 that crashed and left 179 dead in the recent tragedy.
The inspection period for B737-800s in service was initially slated to wrap up Friday, but has been extended for a week until Jan. 10. Officials will check maintenance levels and the overall operation of the aircrafts. Currently, 101 Boeing 737-800s are being used by Korean airlines predominantly for flights lasting six hours or under.
Jeju Air's current fleet consists mostly of B737-800s. The airline has the most models in the country (39), followed by T'way Air's 27, Jin Air's 19, Eastar Jet's 10, Air Incheon's four, and two operated by Korean Air. Though the relatively older model is still in use, Jeju Air recently inked a deal with Boeing to purchase newer models.
A B737-800 airplane operated by Jeju Air crashed at Muan International Airport in South Jeolla Province on Sunday after attempting to land without deploying its landing gear. Government investigations are underway to determine the cause, with bird strikes and gear malfunction among possible contributory factors.
Ongoing investigations include sending the plane's flight data recorder to the US-based experts next week, with two investigators of the ministry slated to accompany the device in restoring the data. Data restoration and analysis is expected to take months.
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