South Korean investigators announced Friday that they expect to discover more human remains as they began recovering the wreckage of the Jeju Air jet that crashed during landing last weekend, killing all but two of the 181 passengers and crew aboard.
Flight 2216, traveling from Bangkok to Muan, exploded in a fiery ball of flames after colliding with a concrete barrier at the end of the runway, following a mayday call and emergency belly landing.
While the exact cause of the Boeing 737-800 crash remains unclear, investigators are considering a bird strike, faulty landing gear and the runway barrier as potential factors.
Using large yellow cranes, investigators began lifting sections of the scorched fuselage Friday, including what appeared to be the engine and tail section.
"Today, we will lift the tail section of the plane," said Na Won-ho, head of investigations for the South Jeolla provincial police.
"We expect there may be remains found in that section," he told a press conference at Muan International Airport, where the crash occurred.
"For all that to be complete and to have the results, we must wait until tomorrow."
Because of the violent destruction of the aircraft, officials said some of the bodies suffered extreme damage, and it was taking investigators time to piece them together while preserving crash site evidence.
All 179 victims have been identified, however, and some bodies have been released to families for funerals to begin.
Police have vowed to quickly determine the cause and responsibility for the disaster, but the transport ministry said it could take six months to three years.
Police on Thursday conducted a series of raids on the offices of Jeju Air and the Muan airport operator as they stepped up their investigation.
Police were securing evidence from the airport's localizer – a concrete wall housing an antenna array at the end of the runway – as well as communications between the control tower and cockpit before the crash, Yonhap reported.
Officials are also inspecting all Boeing 737-800 aircraft operated by South Korean carriers, focusing on the landing gear.
The investigation is led by South Korean air safety officials, with assistance from the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration, which frequently aids with global plane crash investigations.
Meanwhile, China's Civil Aviation Administration announced Friday that it is taking measures in response to the Jeju Air crash.
It "comprehensively investigated runways for safety hazards" and "strengthened the effectiveness of bird strike risk prevention," state broadcaster CCTV reported, citing the administration's safety director, Shu Mingjiang.
In Muan, relatives of the victims visited the crash site to pay their respects and collect the belongings of their loved ones.
The disaster has prompted an outpouring of national support in South Korea, with a period of mourning lasting until Saturday and donations flooding in for victims' families.
J-Hope, a member of K-pop mega group BTS, sent 100 million won ($68,000) to the families as a "small measure of support," according to the local Korea Herald newspaper.
In other acts of kindness, some Koreans had remotely pre-paid for coffee at the airport's cafe so that the victims' families could drink without paying, while star chefs from the Netflix hit Culinary Class Wars prepared meals.
