Over 60,000 flight bookings CANCELLED following South Korea plane crash that killed 179 people
WATCH NOW: Scenes from the South Korea plane crash
GB NEWS
Thousands of passengers have cancelled their Jeju Air bookings following a devastating plane crash in South Korea that claimed 179 lives.
More than 60,000 reservations have been scrapped after a Jeju Air flight from Bangkok crashed at Muan International Airport when its landing gear failed to deploy.
The aircraft skidded down the runway before hitting a wall and bursting into flames in what has become one of the country's worst aviation disasters.
Anxious customers are now contacting travel agencies to enquire about aircraft types before flying.
Relatives of a passenger of the aircraft that crashed after it went off the runway, react at Muan International AirportReutersThe mass cancellations have affected both domestic and international routes, though the airline maintains that new bookings continue to flow in steadily.
According to Jeju Air officials, approximately 33,000 domestic flight bookings were cancelled by Monday afternoon local time.
A further 34,000 international flight tickets were also cancelled in the wake of the tragedy.
Song Kyung-hoon, head of the management support office at Jeju Air, acknowledged the surge in cancellations at a news conference.
"Given the current situation, the cancellation rate is slightly higher than usual," he said. "However, the inflow of new bookings remains steady."
The airline confirmed that the crashed aircraft had no previous accident history and was fully operational when departing Bangkok.
The plane had completed 13 flights in the two days before the accident, including several to other Asian destinations.
Adding to safety concerns, another Jeju Air Boeing 737-800 faced technical difficulties today when it was forced to return to Gimpo Airport.
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The plane, which had 181 people on board, was attempting to land shortly after 9am local time at Muan International AirportReutersThe incident occurred due to a landing gear warning, though the airline later confirmed the issue had been resolved.
This latest incident has heightened anxieties among passengers, coming shortly after the fatal crash at Muan International Airport.
The previous crash occurred when the aircraft's landing gear failed to deploy during landing, leading to the catastrophic accident that claimed 179 lives.
Grieving relatives have gathered at Muan airport to voice their frustration over the slow progress of victim recovery and identification efforts.
Jeju Air CEO Kim E-bae and officials bow to apologise for their plane's incident at Muan International AirportReutersPark Han-shin, speaking on behalf of the victims' families, urged authorities to intensify their search operations in the crash area.
"We want the authorities to bring our loved ones back, even if they are only 80 per cent intact," he told reporters.
The investigation into the tragic incident continues, with South Korean authorities taking the lead.
Boeing and the US National Transportation Safety Board are assisting in the investigation to determine the cause of the crash.
The disaster has become one of the worst in South Korea's aviation history, with recovery efforts ongoing at the crash site.
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