Investigators cautious of jet fuel still aboard wrecked South Korean plane

Korean Air Lines Co

31/01/2025 03:52

SEOUL, Jan 31 (Reuters) - An investigation into a fire
that engulfed an Air Busan  298690.KS  plane at a South Korean
airport this week is being slowed by a large amount of fuel and
oxygen still on board, an air crash investigation official told
Reuters.  
    Authorities on Friday conducted a risk management assessment
ahead of a full investigation of the burned-out Airbus  AIR.PA 
A321ceo plane which remains on the tarmac at Gimhae
International Airport in the southern city of Busan.
    The fire, which began around 10:15 p.m. (1315 GMT) on
Tuesday as the jet was preparing for departure to Hong Kong, was
first detected by a flight attendant in an overhead luggage bin
in the rear left-hand side of the plane, an Air Busan
spokesperson told Reuters on Friday. 
    All 169 passengers and seven crew members were evacuated
using emergency slides after the fire broke out, with only a few
minor injuries, Air Busan said. 
    The incident came a month after the deadliest air disaster
on South Korean soil when a Jeju Air  089590.KS  plane crashed
on Muan Airport's runway as it made an emergency belly landing,
killing all but two of the 181 people on board.
    
    FUEL HAZARD
    Air Busan's single-aisle 17-year-old plane has burnt out
holes along the length of the fuselage roof. Its wings and
engines were not burned, a transport ministry statement said. 
    The plane still contains around 35,900 lbs (16,280 kg) of
jet fuel and other hazardous materials such as oxygen tanks, the
transport ministry said on a statement on Thursday.     
    Authorities need to decide whether the fuel needs to be
offloaded before a full investigation begins, the ministry said.
    South Korea's Aviation and Railway Accident Investigation
Board is leading the investigation, and was joined on Thursday
by representatives of France's BEA air accident investigation
agency. France is the state of design for Airbus planes.

 (Reporting by Lisa Barrington, Jack Kim, Hyonhee Shin, Hyun
Young Yi; Editing by Lincoln Feast.)
 ((lisa.barrington@thomsonreuters.com;))