https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/evidence-shows-jeju-air-pilots-shut-off-less-damaged-engine-before-crash-source-2025-07-21/ – Evidence shows Jeju Air pilots shut off less-damaged engine before crash, source says
… The source said the evidence, including the cockpit voice recorder, computer data and a physical engine switch found in the wreckage showed pilots shut off the left engine instead of the right engine when taking emergency steps after a bird strike just before it was scheduled to land. … Investigators told victims’ family members at a briefing on Saturday that the right engine had been more severely damaged by a bird strike than the left, and there was circumstantial evidence that pilots had turned off the less-damaged left engine, according to a third source who was at the briefing. …
FWIW… but from my John Lawton understanding and following of things :
- pilots coming into land, which is typically the most stressful part of the flight
- birdstrike happens, and pilots may not know all the details
- increased pressure to “do something,” which can lead to mistakes – missing the last 4minutes of the CVR is definitely NOT going to help matters
- landing as quickly as possible seems to be SOP
- the non-standard embankment at the end of the runway was the “Murphy’s Law” in what may have be a survivable incident.
and again, I’m drawn to looking at this situation as essentially US Airways 1549 in reverse, and how both skill and luck played in getting that flight down with no casualties.
Actual pilots would be better to ask this to : but what standard training / SOP is out there for any flight emergencies on final approach? IIRC, US Airways 1549 exposed that there wasn’t much in terms of losing both engines at such a low altitude, and processes / training had to be updated to account for this.
shrugs
Regards