Bird feathers found in crashed South Korean jet engines

Investigators say they have found evidence of a bird strike on a passenger plane that crashed in South Korea in December, killing 179 people.

The feathers and blood stains on both engines of the Jeju Air plane were from the Baikal Teal, a type of migratory duck that occurs in large flocks, according to a preliminary investigation report released Monday.

The investigation into the crash, the deadliest on South Korean soil, will now focus on the role of striking birds and a concrete structure at the end of the runway, on which the plane crashed.

The engines of the Boeing 737-800 will be torn down and the concrete structure will be further examined, according to the report.

The Air Jeju plane took off from Bangkok on the morning of December 29 and was flying to Muan International Airport in the southwest of the country.

At approximately 08:57 local time, three minutes after the pilots contacted the airport, the control tower advised the crew to be cautious of “bird activity.”

At 08:59, the pilot reported that the plane had hit a bird and declared a Mayday signal.

The pilot then requested permission to land from the opposite direction, during which he belly-flopped without his landing gear deployed. It reversed the runway and exploded after hitting the concrete structure, the report said.

Authorities previously said the plane’s flight data and cockpit voice recorders stopped recording about four minutes before the disaster.

Experts who had flown the same type of aircraft involved in the crash also questioned the presence of the concrete barriers along the runway, with some suggesting that the number of casualties would have been lower if they were not there.

The concrete structure has a navigation system that helps aircraft land, known as a locator.

South Korea’s Ministry of Transportation had said that this system could also be found at other airports in the country and even abroad.

Last week, authorities announced that Change concrete barriers used for navigation in seven airports throughout the country. Seven airports will also have their runway safety areas adapted after a review.

The preliminary report has been submitted to the United Nations Aviation Agency and authorities in the United States, France and Thailand.