After ‘deadliest’ South Korea plane crash, another Jeju Air Boeing 737-800 aircraft faces malfunction

A Jeju Air flight, that took off in South Korea on Monday, returned to the airport of departure, reportedly due to the same landing gear issue that was found in a deadly crash that happened at the Muan International Airport earlier, local media reports claimed.

Jeju Air Flight 7C101 had departed from Gimpo International Airport for Jeju. It detected an issue with its landing gear shortly after takeoff, Korea Herald cited industry sources as saying.

The aircraft involved in the return flight was a Boeing B737-800, the same model as the one involved in the Muan airport disaster.

"We are aware of the return incident and looking into the cause," a Jeju Air representative told AFP. "We can't say at this moment it was related to landing gear malfunction pending an investigation," the official added.

Jeju Air plans to resume operations after switching to a replacement aircraft. Landing gear is an essential device directly related to flight safety, ensuring safe takeoffs and landings while mitigating impact during emergency landings

Earlier on Sunday, the Boeing 737-800 aircraft, carrying 181 people from Thailand to South Korea, crashed, killing everyone aboard – save two flight attendants pulled from the twisted wreckage of the worst aviation disaster on South Korean soil.

Officials have pointed to a bird strike – a warning was issued by the control tower minutes before the crash – as a likely factor in Sunday's crash.

However, a growing chorus of criticism from experts analysing dramatic video footage of Flight 2216's landing has focused on whether airport construction could have played a part.

A video clip, purportedly showing Sunday's plane crash, showed the plane, its landing gear still retracted, attempting a belly landing. The dramatic video showed the plane skidding along the runway with smoke trailing behind until it slams into a wall at the end and bursts into flames.