A moment presumed to be the last of the captain has been captured in the Jeju Air passenger plane accident. Internet users speculated that the captain tried their best to minimize damage until the very last moment.
On the morning of 29th at around 9:03 a.m., a Jeju Air flight 7C2216 from Bangkok, Thailand, attempted to land at Muan International Airport in Jeollanam-do but crashed into the airport's end structure, resulting in an explosion.
After footage of the accident moment was released, internet user A focused on the last moments in the airplane cockpit. From the photo he posted on social media, it appears the captain is reaching up to touch the panel above with an arm extended inside the cockpit window. A noted, "The last of the accident aircraft captain. Hands on the cockpit panel until the very last moment... I believe you did your best."
A's post resonated with many internet users, leading to comments such as, "Even as someone who knows nothing, the belly landing looked too stable. You must have exhausted all your experience to do your best. I feel so sad about the explosion that happened without a moment's notice," and, "It seems like they pulled the control stick to create as much friction as possible," as well as, "I could only see this. It seems like they did their best and took a posture to brace for impact."
The captain of the ill-fated Jeju Air aircraft, Han (45), was a veteran with over 6,800 hours of flying experience and was known to be a former Air Force member. Colleagues have assessed his flying skills positively. It is reported that they remember him as "a colleague who would not compromise on safety" and "someone who did their best until the very end in an emergency situation."