Kim Eun-hye, a member of the People Power Party, noted on the 6th that the investigation related to the Jeju Air passenger plane disaster should also consider the possibility of an incident caused by engine defects in addition to bird strike.
During a full meeting of the special committee for the truth-finding of the 12/29 passenger plane disaster and the compensation of victims and bereaved families that took place in the National Assembly, Kim explained that the engine 'CFM-56-7B' installed on the aircraft involved in this accident has confirmed cases of past explosions due to defects.
According to Kim, in April 2018, Southwest Airlines Flight 1380, a Boeing 737 passenger aircraft, made an emergency landing after an explosion of the same type of engine involved in the accident. Jeju Air also faced similar issues in 2022 when a flight returning from Japan's Kansai to Incheon experienced the same engine problem. While there were signs of bird strike at the time of the incident, a detailed investigation revealed that engine manufacturing defects were confirmed.
Kim stated that "the damage to the high-pressure turbine blades caused a sequential failure of the low-pressure turbine, resulting in the engine failure during flight" and added, "The German engine repair facility informed that the defect was confirmed to be caused by special processes and forging steps at the engine manufacturing stage."
Kim remarked, "It is concerning that the same engine, which was found to have anomalies even after frequent accidents and the recent government special safety inspection, was mounted on the accident passenger plane while the engine manufacturer was excluded from the accident investigation committee. For a fair and neutral investigation, the participation of families of victims or experts recommended by the National Assembly should be supplemented."