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Thai government confirms death of two nationals in Jeju Air crash

Published: 30 Dec. 2024, 10:26 Updated: 30 Dec. 2024, 15:18

LIM JEONG-WON
[email protected]

Rescuers operate at the site of an airplane crash at the Muan International Airport on Dec. 29. [XINHUA/YONHAP]

The Thai government confirmed late Sunday that two Thai nationals on board the Jeju Air 7C 2216 airplane from Bangkok that crashed at Muan International Airport earlier the same day had died in the crash.

According to Thai media outlet Bangkok Post late Sunday, Thai Ambassador to Korea, Tanee Sangrat, said that the two Thai nationals, women aged 22 and 45, had died in the crash.

“I express my sincere condolences to the families and loved ones of those who lost their lives or were injured in this unfortunate incident,” Sangrat said in a statement.

According to local daily newspaper Matichon, the 45-year-old woman was from Udon Thani Province in northeastern Thailand. She had moved to Korea for work seven years ago and married a Korean man, and has since been living in Korea.

The woman visited her hometown about once a year, according to the report from Matichon, and had traveled to Thailand with her husband early this month. Her husband returned to Korea on Dec. 14, and the woman boarded the Jeju Air 7C 2216 plane on Saturday.

Her father, aged 77, who was interviewed by Matichon, was in shock when he heard the news that his daughter was killed in the crash. He reportedly shed tears and said he wanted to see his daughter’s face one last time when her body was returned to her hometown.

The 22-year-old woman who was also killed in the plane crash at Muan was a senior at a university in Bangkok, according to multiple local reports. She was on her way to Korea to meet her mother who was married to a Korean and lives in South Jeolla.

Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra expressed her condolences to the bereaved families and the injured survivors on X, formerly Twitter, adding that she had instructed the Thai Foreign Ministry to promptly assist the families of the Thai nationals who were killed.

“I am deeply saddened with today’s Jeju Air tragic incident, in which two Thai nationals were among the deceased,” Shinawatra wrote. “My heartfelt condolences go out to all grieving families and all those that have lost loved ones. I have instructed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to work closely with Korea’s relevant authorities to take the best care of the bereaved families and on the immediate repatriation of the deceased.”

The Bangkok Post also reported that the Thai Embassy in Korea and agencies under the Thai Transport Ministry are also working to support the bereaved families.

On Sunday morning at around 9:03 a.m., Jeju Air Flight 7C 2216, a Boeing 737-800 passenger plane departing from Bangkok, crashed while attempting to land on the runway at Muan International Airport. The aircraft experienced landing gear failure and attempted a belly landing before crashing into the outer wall of the runway, breaking apart and exploding in flames.

The crash killed 179 people, including 175 passengers, 173 Koreans and 2 Thais alongside 4 pilots and cabin crew, and injured two crew members who survived.

BY LIM JEONG-WON [[email protected]]