Watch: Moment when plane skidded off runway, burst into flames at South Korea airport

Dramatic visuals surfaced on Sunday morning, capturing the crash of a Boeing 737-800 aircraft operated by Jeju Air at Muan International Airport. The incident claimed the lives of at least 47 people, according to Yonhap news agency.
In the footage documenting the crash, the plane is seen skidding uncontrollably along the runway before erupting into a massive fireball. Thick black smoke emerged from the engines during its attempted landing, only for the aircraft to be engulfed in flames moments later.
The aircraft’s attempted ‘belly landing’—a last resort maneuver used when landing gear fails—is believed to have contributed to the crash. Initial reports suggest that the landing gear malfunctioned following suspected contact with birds.

The incident occurred at 9:07 am local time, when the flight from Bangkok to Muan veered off the runway and collided with a fence at the airport, located approximately 288 kilometers southwest of Seoul. Onboard were 175 passengers and six crew members, most of them South Korean nationals, along with two Thai citizens.
Jeju Air, founded in 2005, is one of South Korea’s leading low-cost carriers with a spotless safety track record. Its only other notable accident occurred in 2007 when a Bombardier Q400 veered off the runway due to strong winds at Busan-Gimhae Airport, resulting in a dozen injuries but no fatalities.
The tragedy comes days after another aviation disaster in Kazakhstan, where an Azerbaijan Airlines flight burst into flames, claiming 38 lives. Preliminary investigations suggest the possibility of “external interference,” fueling speculation about geopolitical tensions impacting air travel.