The tragic crash of Jeju Air Flight 2216 in South Korea underlined the serious risks that bird strikes pose to commercial airliners. According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, pilots reported a collision with a flock of birds shortly before declaring a Mayday and attempting an emergency landing at Muan International Airport.
Dramatic footage showed the Boeing 787-800 making a belly-flop landing without its landing gear deployed. The aircraft skidded across the tarmac, colliding with a concrete wall, resulting in an explosion that claimed 179 of the 181 lives on board.
Though bird strikes are well-known as a hazard, aviation experts consider that alone wouldn’t have brought such a crash. Dane Williams from Aviation Safety Asia said, “Modern aircraft are designed to take such foreign object impacts.” Evidence of electrical failure: The aircraft stopped transmitting critical location data shortly after the Mayay call.
Investigations into the disaster, which was the deadliest air accident in South Korean history, may take months. Local investigators were cooperating with the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board because the aircraft was built in the United States.
While bird strikes are common, few lead to serious accidents. According to the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration, there were over 19,400 wildlife strikes at U.S. airports in 2023, with most causing little damage. The frequency of bird strikes has risen with increasing air travel, raising concern over safety measures.
As South Korea began a week of national mourning, Acting President Choi Sang-mok visited the crash site to pay respects. The authorities have ordered a special inspection of all Boeing 737-800s currently in operation and comprehensive safety reviews of the aviation sector to try to prevent such a disaster from ever happening again.
