South Korea's deadliest plane crash underscores the risks posed by bird strikes.
Bird strikes are a common hazard for commercial flights but only rarely cause serious accidents, experts say.
The tragic crash of Jeju Air Flight 2216 in South Korea has underscored the dangers bird strikes pose to commercial aviation.
According to South Korea’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport, pilots reported colliding with a flock of birds moments before issuing a Mayday call and attempting an emergency landing at Muan International Airport. Footage from the crash on Sunday shows the twin-engine Boeing 737-800 landing belly-first on the runway, with its landing gear not deployed.
The aircraft skidded across the tarmac before striking a concrete wall and bursting into flames, claiming the lives of 179 out of 181 people on board.
Geoffrey Thomas, editor-in-chief of Australia-based Airline Ratings, suggested that while the bird strike may have contributed to the crash, it likely wasn’t the sole cause.
“There is evidence pointing to an electrical failure, as the aircraft stopped transmitting ADS-B data shortly after declaring Mayday,” Thomas said. “The pilots faced cascading failures—we don’t know their exact nature. However, they didn’t deploy the flaps or the undercarriage for landing. Why these failures occurred remains unclear, but all this unfolded after air traffic control warned of a bird flock.”
It may take months for investigators to determine the exact cause of South Korea’s deadliest air disaster. South Korean authorities, alongside the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board, are conducting the investigation due to the aircraft’s U.S. origin.
Bird strikes are a common hazard in aviation but rarely result in serious accidents. The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration reported 19,400 wildlife strikes at U.S. airports in 2023 and another 236 incidents involving U.S. airlines abroad. Most bird strikes cause only minor damage, costing the aviation industry an estimated $1.5 billion annually.
Thomas explained that the rise in bird strikes correlates with increased air travel—over 120,000 daily flights globally—and quieter planes that make birds less aware of approaching aircraft. Despite the risks, most bird strikes have little to no impact on flights.
In the UK, fewer than 100 of 1,400 bird strikes in 2022 caused damage or interrupted flights, according to the Civil Aviation Authority.
Notable incidents, however, include Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 in 2019, where a probable bird strike triggered a faulty flight control system, and the 2009 emergency landing of US Airways Flight 1549 in New York’s Hudson River after hitting a bird flock.
Doug Drury, an aviation expert from Australia’s CQUniversity, said a bird strike alone should not have caused the Jeju Air crash. He raised concerns about the pilots' actions, including why they failed to slow the aircraft, landed in the wrong direction, and overshot the landing zone.
“Pilots are trained to slow to just above stall speed for emergency landings. Why wasn’t the runway treated with flame-retardant foam?” Drury asked.
He also pointed out that airports typically use bird deterrents, such as shotgun sound mimics, lasers, or warning lights. Reports indicate that Muan International Airport had delayed implementing such measures due to ongoing runway extension work.
South Korea has declared seven days of national mourning, with Acting President Choi Sang-mok visiting the crash site to pay his respects. Authorities have tentatively identified 141 victims and are considering inspections of all Boeing 737-800s operating in the country.
Choi, recently appointed after the impeachment of the president and prime minister, has called for an emergency safety review of South Korea’s entire aviation system to prevent future disasters.
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