Experts say bird strike would NOT have crippled landing gear of South Korean jet:

In a contentious debate over the catastrophic crash of a Jeju Air Boeing 737-800 in South Korea, which claimed 179 lives, experts are casting doubt on the official narrative that a bird strike was the sole cause of the disaster. The plane, carrying 181 souls from Bangkok to Muan International Airport, reportedly encountered a bird strike during landing, but the mechanics of how this led to the failure of the landing gear are under scrutiny.

Unverified footage shows an explosion from what is claimed to be the impact of birds hitting the plane, yet experts like Australian aviation safety analyst Geoffrey Dell question how a bird strike could cripple the landing gear, stating, “I’ve never seen a bird strike prevent the landing gear from being extended.” Similarly, Geoffrey Thomas from Airline News points out that bird strikes, while common, rarely lead to such catastrophic outcomes on their own.

The plane attempted a belly-landing, sliding off the runway and into a concrete wall, erupting into flames. This has led to questions about airport design and emergency preparedness. Why wasn’t the runway prepped with foam, and why was there such a hazardous structure at its end? The presence of the wall at the runway’s conclusion has been particularly criticized.

Despite these doubts, not all experts agree. Sally Gethin from Sky News posits that bird ingestion could indeed disrupt hydraulics, leading to gear failure, though this theory seems to rely on a series of unfortunate coincidences rather than solid evidence. Marco Chan from Buckinghamshire New University adds to the debate, suggesting the situation might have unfolded too quickly for the crew to respond adequately, possibly due to engine damage from the bird strike.

Official statements from Jeju Air have been cautious, with the airline’s CEO, Kim E-bae, publicly apologizing but withholding details pending a thorough investigation. The airline’s management has denied any maintenance issues, but whether this is a deflection remains to be seen.

The narrative is further complicated by the rapid sequence of events—bird strike warning, Mayday call, and the decision to land from the opposite direction. This suggests a scenario where the crew was possibly overwhelmed, but the exact chain of events leading to such a dire outcome is still murky.

The aftermath has been one of national mourning, with families grappling with the loss amidst the chaos of identification and the grim reality of the temporary morgue at the airport. The involvement of the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board in the investigation, due to the plane being American-made, adds another layer to this already complex puzzle.

The skepticism here stems from the apparent simplicity of attributing such a tragedy to a single bird strike, especially when other factors like emergency response, runway design, and aircraft control failures could play significant roles. The investigation’s findings will be crucial, not just for closure but for understanding what truly went wrong in this chain of unfortunate events.