Updated on
Summary The plane was carrying two crew members and 58 tonnes of cargo to Shanghai from South Korea.
An Asiana Airlines cargo plane carrying two people crashed into waters off South Korea’s southern resort island of Jeju on Thursday.The plane crashed after reporting a mechanical problem and losing contact with air traffic workers.Five coast guard patrol boats and four helicopters were searching the area for signs of the pilot and co-pilot, Jeju coast guard spokesman Choi Kyu-mo said.Coast guard searchers have recovered part of a wing with an Asiana Airlines logo on it, life jackets and parts of a pilot seat, the coast guard said in a statement.The plane had taken off from South Korea’s Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul, and was bound for Pudong in China, Asian Airlines said in a statement. It was carrying computers, semiconductors, paint and resin solution among others, it said.Asiana officials got a report early Thursday morning from the pilot that the Boeing-747, which was southwest of Jeju, was having mechanical difficulties and would try to make its way to the island’s airport, said Jason Kim, a spokesman for Asiana.Officials then lost contact with the plane and asked the South Korean coast guard to investigate. The airline also sent its own emergency specialists to the area.
