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Akbar Novruz

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Investigators have successfully extracted data from one of the black boxes of the Jeju Air plane that crashed on Sunday, according to South Korea’s transport ministry, Azernews reports via BBC.

The recovered cockpit voice recorder data is now being converted into an audio file, while efforts to access data from the flight data recorder are ongoing. The second black box, which could provide critical insights, is missing a key component required for decoding.

The crash, which occurred at Muan International Airport, claimed the lives of 179 people, making it South Korea’s deadliest aviation disaster. The Boeing 737-800, flying from Bangkok, slid into a wall after crash-landing, bursting into flames. Only two crew members survived the tragedy.

Authorities are investigating various factors that may have contributed to the crash, including a potential bird strike or adverse weather conditions. Officials from the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board have also joined the probe.

South Korea’s acting president, Choi Sang-mok, announced that all victims had been identified through DNA and fingerprint analysis, as many bodies were severely damaged. The victims, aged between three and 78, were predominantly South Korean, with two Thai nationals among the deceased.

In response to the tragedy, South Korea has declared a seven-day national mourning period, and New Year’s Day celebrations have been cancelled or scaled down. Jeju Air CEO Kim Yi-bae stated that pre-flight inspections revealed no issues with the plane and pledged emergency compensation for victims’ families, including funeral costs.

Investigations are ongoing as authorities work to uncover the sequence of events leading to the crash and provide answers to the grieving families.