Smoke filled the cabin of a JIN AIR passenger plane that was to fly from Jeju to Pohang, prompting all passengers and crew to evacuate.
According to the aviation industry on Jan. 2, at 12:25 p.m. a JIN AIR Flight LJ436 from Jeju International Airport to Pohang Gyeongju Airport was preparing for departure when unidentified smoke entered the cabin. A total of 122 people, including passengers and crew who were boarding, evacuated.
When smoke was detected, a warning alarm sounded in the cockpit, and crew who checked it immediately guided passengers to evacuate. It was determined that no actual fire occurred inside or outside the aircraft.
An inspection found the smoke occurred during overheating caused by an internal defect in the auxiliary power unit (APU) mounted in the tail section of the aircraft. The APU supplies power, air-conditioning, and other functions to the cabin while on the ground or when engines are shut down.
JIN AIR removed the aircraft from service and around 5:15 p.m. operated a delayed flight to Pohang by deploying a replacement aircraft. Passengers waited at the gate until boarding the replacement flight.
A JIN AIR official said, "No fire occurred and there was no dispatch of the airport fire brigade," adding, "We deployed a replacement flight from Busan and arranged a delayed departure under the same flight number."