South Korean government Saturday (Jan 11) said in a statement that critical data was missing from black boxes of the Jeju Air plane that crashed at Muan International Airport on December 29, leading to the loss of 179 lives. The transport Ministry said that flight data and voice recorders mysteriously stopped working just four minutes prior to the crash that has been blamed on a bird strike.

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According to media reports, the pilots had told air traffic control about the alleged bird hit four minutes before the crash. The transport ministry said the black boxes were initially examined in South Korea but were later transferred to a US National Transportation Safety Board laboratory when investigators found the data missing.

The aircraft, which departed Thai capital Bangkok for Muan, belly-landed without landing gear deployed, and slammed into a concrete embankment, turning into a giant fireball.

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Rare and surprising

Reuters news agency quoted Sim Jai-dong, a former transport ministry accident investigator, as saying that it was indeed surprising that the crucial data was missing from the black boxes. The expert noted that it indicates all power including backup may have been cut on the plane, which is ‘rare’.

Also read: South Korea's transport minister to resign over deadly plane crash

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The government has assured that a transparent probe would be conducted into the crash using all information available, and the same would be shared with the victims’ families.

It comes as several families have cast doubts over the investigation, who argued that the probe should be led by independent experts and not the government machinery.

Also read: Jeju Air CEO banned from leaving South Korea after fatal crash, say police

Amid chaos, transport minister Park Sang-woo offered his resignation earlier this week, saying he felt “a heavy sense of responsibility regarding this tragedy”.

(With inputs from agencies)