Dec. 29 (UPI) — A flight operated by Jeju Air crashed at 9:03 a.m. local time on Sunday while the plane was attempting to land at Muan International Airport near the southern tip of South Korea.
The Boeing 737-800 operating as Jeju Air Flight 2216 had taken off from Bangkok, Thailand, and was scheduled to touch down around 8:20 a.m., according to data from Flight Aware. South Korea’s National Fire Agency confirmed that the crash happened on the runway as the plane was landing.
South Korea’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said in a statement that the crash led to the confirmed deaths of 177 people, with two people injured and two people remaining missing from the 175 passengers and six crew members onboard.
First responders rescued two cabin crew members, one male and one female, who were transferred to Seoul National University Hospital for medical treatment.
The victims from the mass casualty event were placed in a temporary morgue set up at the airport as officials continue confirming their identification with their bereaved family members, the ministry said in its statement.
The investigation into the cause of the crash remains ongoing. More than 490 firefighters, 455 police officers, 340 military personnel and other Coast Guard and government officials were dispatched to the scene.
Jeju Air chief executive Kim Lee-bae apologized for the crash in a statement and said the incident occurred after a fire broke out onboard the plane.
“First of all, I would like to bow my head and apologize to all those who have supported Jeju Air,” Kim said. “Above all, I would like to express my deepest condolences and apologies to the passengers and their families who lost their lives in the accident.”
Kim said that it remains “difficult to determine the cause of the accident” and said the public must wait for the official investigation announcement from the relevant government agencies.
“Regardless of the cause of the accident, I feel responsible as the CEO,” Kim said. “Jeju Air will do everything it can to quickly recover from the accident and support the families of the passengers.”
Two of the passengers were Thai nationals.
