Another Jeju Air plane has landing gear problem, forced to make emergency landing

Jeju Air flight number 7C101, carrying 161 passengers, departed from Gimpo airport in Seoul, South Korea at 6:37 a.m. today, December 30 (4:37 a.m. Hanoi time) to Jeju Island. However, immediately after takeoff, the pilot discovered an abnormality in the landing gear and requested an emergency landing.

The plane returned to Gimpo Airport, landing safely at 7:25. Passengers boarded another flight and continued their journey.

"Returning to the airport is a necessary measure to ensure flight safety. We apologize for the inconvenience to passengers," a Jeju Air official said.

The plane involved in the accident was a Boeing 737-800, the same type as the Jeju Air plane that crashed off the runway at Muan airport, killing 179 people a day earlier.

Acting South Korean President Choi Sang-mok today ordered an emergency safety inspection of the country's entire aviation system, after recovery work at the Muan disaster site was completed.

In the December 29 tragedy, the Jeju Air plane hit a bird and apparently had a problem with its landing gear, forcing the crew to make a belly landing. The Boeing 737-800 skidded across the runway, seemingly unable to slow down before crashing into a concrete wall and bursting into flames.

Korean officials said a landing gear failure was one of the main causes of this tragedy.

The Boeing 737-800 is one of four main variants of the 737 Next Generation series that entered service in 1997. It is the third-generation version of the Boeing 737, one of the world's most popular jetliners.

Jeju Air is a low-cost airline in South Korea, operating many routes between the country and Southeast Asia, with a fleet consisting mainly of Boeing 737-800 aircraft. Before the accident on December 29, Jeju Air operated 41 aircraft of various types, of which 39 were Boeing 737-800s.