Korean Air Lines Flight 015
A KAL Boeing 747 similar to the aircraft involved in the accident | |
| Accident | |
|---|---|
| Date | November 19, 1980 |
| Summary | Controlled flight into terrain due to pilot error and poor visibility |
| Site | Gimpo International Airport, Seoul, South Korea |
| Aircraft | |
| Aircraft type | Boeing 747-2B5B |
| Operator | Korean Air Lines |
| Call sign | KOREAN AIR 015 |
| Registration | HL7445 |
| Flight origin | Los Angeles International Airport, California, United States |
| Stopover | Anchorage International Airport, Alaska, United States |
| Destination | Gimpo International Airport, Gimpo, South Korea |
| Occupants | 226 |
| Passengers | 206 |
| Crew | 20 |
| Fatalities | 15 |
| Injuries | 5 |
| Survivors | 211 |
Korean Air Lines Flight 015 was a Boeing 747-200 operating a scheduled passenger flight from Los Angeles International Airport, in Los Angeles, California, to Gimpo International Airport in Seoul, South Korea with an intermediate stop in Anchorage, Alaska, that crashed while attempting to land on 19 November 1980. Of the 226 passengers and crew on board, 15 were killed in the accident.[1] The aircraft was damaged beyond repair.
Background
Aircraft
The aircraft involved was a Boeing 747-2B5B that was less than a year old. It was registered as HL7445 with four Pratt & Whitney JT9D-7Q. The MSN of the aircraft was 21773/366.[2]
Accident
The wind was calm with a visibility of 1,000 m in fog as the Korean Air Lines 747 made its approach to Runway 14 at Gimpo International Airport.[3] The pilot reported trouble with the controls[4] shortly before the aircraft touched down 90 metres short of the threshold and contacted an embankment slope. The aircraft's cargo compartment was ruptured after the main landing gear were pushed into it. Flight 015 slid down the runway on its belly and a fire broke out. The aircraft was evacuated but six crew and nine passengers were killed in the accident and four passengers had serious injuries.[2][3]
Cause
Crashed short of runway due to crew error in low visibility weather, complicated by the crew's difficulty to control the aircraft.
References
- ^ "Korean Air Flight 015". Airdisaster.com. Archived from the original on 21 March 2015. Retrieved 27 May 2019.
- ^ a b "Accident Boeing 747-2B5B HL7445, Wednesday 19 November 1980". Aviation Safety Network. Flight Safety Foundation.
- ^ a b UK CAA Document CAA 429 World Airline Accident Summary (ICAO Summary 1/82).
- ^ "12 die as jet crash-lands in Korea". The Day. Seoul, South Korea. The Associated Press. 19 November 1980. p. 12 – via Google News Archive.