South Korean navy patrol plane crash kills all aboard; third incident of flight accident in recent months

A South Korean navy maritime patrol plane crashed Thursday (May 29), killing all four crew members aboard, authorities said.

The aircraft crashed into a mountainous region near the southeastern city of Pohang just before 2 pm, approximately six minutes after takeoff, according to a statement from South Korea’s navy.

The plane had been performing routine takeoff and landing exercises at the time of the incident, the navy said.

“The navy has located all four bodies of the crew members and is currently recovering them,” the statement added.

Two officers and two non-commissioned officers were among the victims, South Korea’s Yonhap News Agency reported.

No civilian casualties were reported.

The cause of the crash remains under investigation, according to the navy. Around 40 firefighting personnel were dispatched to the crash site, Yonhap reported.

While South Korea has significantly improved its aviation safety standards over the past two decades, the country has experienced notable aircraft accidents in recent months.

A Jeju Air Boeing 737-800 crashed during landing at Muan International Airport in December last year, resulting in 179 fatalities out of 181 people on board. The crash was attributed to a bird strike that led to a belly landing and collision with a concrete structure, making it the deadliest aviation disaster in South Korea’s history.

An Air Busan Airbus A321 caught fire while preparing for takeoff at Gimhae International Airport in Busan in January. All 176 occupants were evacuated safely, but seven individuals sustained injuries. The incident is under investigation.

With inputs from agencies