Investigators comb crash site to establish cause, with both black boxes found and decoding work ongoing
\n MUAN
\nSouth Korean police on Thursday raided the offices of Jeju Air and the operator of Muan International Airport as part of the probe into the fatal crash of a Boeing 737-800 plane that killed 179 people.
\nThe flight was carrying 181 people from Thailand to South Korea on Sunday when it issued a mayday call and belly-landed before slamming into a barrier, killing everyone aboard except two flight attendants pulled from the burning wreckage.
\nAuthorities carried out search and seizure operations at the Muan airport where flight 2216 crashed, a regional aviation office in the southwestern city, and Jeju Air\u2019s office in the capital Seoul.
\nSouth Korean and US investigators, including from Boeing, have been combing the crash site since the disaster to establish a cause, with both black boxes found and decoding work ongoing.
\n\u201cIn relation to the plane accident… a search and seizure operation is being conducted from 9am (0000GMT) on January 2 at three locations,\u201d police said in a statement sent to AFP.
\n\u201cThe police plan to swiftly and rigorously determine the cause and responsibility for this accident in accordance with the law and principles.\u201d
\nPolice told AFP the search warrant was issued, and Yonhap reported it was approved on charges of professional negligence resulting in death, citing officials.
\nSouth Korea has also announced it will inspect all Boeing 737-800 aircraft operated by its carriers, focusing on the landing gear, which appears to have malfunctioned during the Sunday crash.
\nSouth Korea\u2019s acting president, Choi Sang-mok, said Thursday that \u201cimmediate action\u201d must be taken if that probe uncovered any issues with the aircraft model.
\nAuthorities have previously said 101 aircraft of the same model were in operation by six different airlines.
\n\u201cAs there\u2019s great public concern about the same aircraft model involved in the accident, the transport ministry and relevant agencies must conduct a thorough inspection of operation maintenance, education, and training,\u201d Choi said Thursday.
\n\u201cIf any issues are found during the inspection, please take immediate corrective action,\u201d he added.
\nThe accident is the worst-ever aviation disaster on South Korean soil.
\nSouth Korean authorities have completed the initial extraction of data for the cockpit voice recorder, but the flight data recorder was damaged and was to be sent to the United States for analysis, officials said Wednesday.
\n\u2018I miss you\u2019
\nOfficials initially pointed to a bird strike as a possible cause of the disaster, and have since said the probe was also examining a concrete barrier at the end of the runway.
\nDramatic video showed the plane colliding with it before bursting into flames.
\nThe land ministry said in a statement that the country\u2019s airports were also being inspected \u201cto evaluate the installation locations\u201d around their runways.
\nAs the investigation continued, families travelled to the crash site for the first time to pay their respects on Wednesday and some returned the following day with cardboard boxes to collect their loved ones\u2019s belongings.
\nOn Thursday at the airport, a monk led prayers close to the crash site, while inside the airport, the stairs were covered in colourful post-it notes left by mourners.
\n\u201cHoney, I miss you way too much,\u201d one of them said.
\n\u201cEven if you faced lonely and painful moments in death, may you now soar like a butterfly,\u201d another read.
\nRelatives also left flowers and food near the site including tteokguk \u2014 rice cake soup traditionally enjoyed in South Korea on New Year\u2019s Day \u2014 as they said their goodbyes, many in tears.
\nLocal media reported on a handwritten note, seemingly written by the pilot\u2019s brother, that was placed alongside gimbap \u2014 a popular Korean dish \u2014 and a drink cup near the crash site.
\n\u201cI feel heartbroken when I think about the struggles you faced alone (in your last moments),\u201d it read.
\n\u201cYou were truly amazing and did so well, so I hope you can now find happiness in a warm place. Thank you, and I\u2019m sorry.\u201d
\nOn Wednesday \u2014 a public holiday in the South \u2014 hundreds of people queued up to pay their respects at an airport memorial altar set up to honour the victims.
\nSo many people came to the memorial that the queue stretched for hundreds of metres and the local cell phone network was overloaded, local media reported.
\nOther altars for the victims have been set up nationwide.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Investigators comb crash site to establish cause, with both black boxes found and decoding work ongoing MUAN South Korean police on Thursday raided the offices of Jeju Air and the operator of Muan International Airport as part of the probe into the fatal crash of a Boeing 737-800 plane that killed 179 people. The flight […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":453173,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-453156","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n