King Charles and Keir Starmer pay tribute to 179 killed in South Korea plane crash

ITV News' Graham Stothard has the latest as investigators work to determine the cause of the Jeju Air plane crash

Some 179 people have been killed after a passenger plane crashed in South Korea, leaving just two survivors, emergency officials have confirmed.

The Jeju Air jet veered off the runway and burst into flames at Muan International Airport on Sunday at around 9am local time (12am GMT), in one of the deadliest aviation disasters in the country's history.

Two crew members were pulled out alive from the plane's wreckage, according to the country's National Fire Agency. Health officials said they are conscious and not in life-threatening condition.

Footage of the crash shows the plane skidding across the runway with its landing gear seemingly still closed, before colliding with a concrete wall. Thick, black smoke billowed from the wreckage, which was engulfed in flames.

Emergency officials in Muan said the plane's landing gear is thought to have malfunctioned.

The Boeing 737-800 was carrying 181 people from Bangkok in Thailand to Muan, a city around 290 kilometres (180 miles) south of Seoul.

Sir Keir Starmer and the King have paid their condolences to the families and love ones of the 179 people killed in the South Korea crash.

The prime minister said in a statement: “I send my deepest condolences to the victims and families of those who lost their lives in the tragic plane crash in Muan.

“I pay tribute to the work of the emergency responders and my thoughts are with the people of the Republic of Korea and Thailand at this terrible time.”

The King has said he and the Queen were keeping the families and loved ones of those who died in their prayers.

In a statement, King Charles III said: “My wife and I were profoundly saddened to learn of the horrific air accident at Muan, which resulted in such grievous loss of life.

“As the people of the Republic of Korea mourn this disaster, the families and loved ones of all the victims are in our prayers.”

UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy also said he was "deeply saddened" by the news of the plane crash and offered his condolences to the victims' families.

As officials work to identify all those on board, family members greive as they wait in Muan airport for the names of some victims to be announced.

So far 88 of the 179 people killed have been identified. The majority of those on board were South Korean, alongside two Thai nationals.

Boonchuay Duangmanee, the father of a Thai victim, told the Associated Press that his daughter, Jongluk, had been working in a factory in South Korea for several years and had returned to Thailand to visit her family.

“I heard that the plane exploded in Korea this morning. But I did not expect at all that my daughter would be on this flight,” he said.

"I never thought that this would be the last time we would see each other forever.”

Thailand’s prime minister, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, expressed deep condolences to the families of two Thai nationals believed to be on board.

Kerati Kijmanawat, the director of the Airports of Thailand, confirmed in a statement that Jeju Air flight 7C 2216 departed from Suvarnabhumi Airport with no reports of abnormal conditions in the airspace or on the runway.

Lee Jeong-hyeon, chief of the Muan fire station, told a televised briefing the plane was completely destroyed by the impact, with only the tail still recognisable.

South Korea's Senior Transport Ministry official Joo Jong-wan said the plane's black box had been retrieved, but workers are still looking for the cockpit voice recording device.

The fire agency deployed 32 fire trucks and several helicopters to contain the fire. About 1,560 firefighters, police officers, soldiers and other officials were also sent to the site, it said.

A bird strike leading to mechanical failure is being investigated as a possible cause of the crash, Lee added. Senior Transport Ministry official Joo Jong-wan told reporters that government investigators had arrived at the site.

Jeju Air in a statement expressed its “deep apology” over the crash and said it will do its “utmost to manage the aftermath of the accident.”

In a televised news conference, Jeju Air’s president Kim E-bae bowed his head alongside other senior company officials as he apologised to bereaved families. He added he feels “full responsibility” for the incident.

Boeing said in a statement on X that it was in contact with Jeju Air and is ready to support the company in dealing with the crash.

“We extend our deepest condolences to the families who lost loved ones, and our thoughts remain with the passengers and crew,” Boeing said.

The last time South Korea suffered a large-scale air disaster was in 1997, when a Korean Airline plane crashed in Guam, killing 228 people on board.

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