Jeju Air: Did bird strike contribute to South Korea plane crash? What we know

Lee Jeong-hyun, the chief of the Muan fire department, told a televised briefing that the tail section of the plane was identifiable but “one cannot recognise the shape of the rest of the plane”.

He said that the bird strike and bad weather may have caused the crash – but that the exact cause is still being investigated. The flight and voice recorders from the plane have been recovered, though the Yonhap news agency reported that the former was damaged

One passenger on the flight messaged a relative, saying that a bird “was stuck in the wing” and that the plane could not land, local media reported.

Officials, however, have not confirmed whether the plane did actually collide with any birds.

The head of Jeju Air’s management said that the crash was not due to “any maintenance issues”, Yonhap reported.

The South Korean transport department said that the head pilot on the flight had held the role since 2019 and had more than 6,800 hours of flight experience.

Geoffrey Thomas, an aviation expert and editor of Airline News, told the BBC that South Korea and its airlines were considered “industry best practice” and that both the aircraft and the airline have an “excellent safety record”.

He added: “A lot of things about this tragedy don’t make sense.”