SEOUL, South Korea — In a significant response to a recent tragic airline incident, South Korea has announced plans to dismantle a concrete structure at Muan International Airport that may have contributed to the severity of a plane crash last month, which resulted in the loss of nearly all 181 passengers and crew onboard, with only two survivors.

Experts and aviation observers have pointed to the localizer at the airport — a concrete barrier located at the end of the runway that contains essential antennas for guiding aircraft during landing — as a potential factor that exacerbated the Jeju Air accident, although the investigation into the crash is still ongoing.

On December 29, the Boeing 737-800 lost control after its landing gear failed to deploy correctly, leading the aircraft to veer off the runway, collide violently with the concrete structure, and erupt in flames upon impact.

Many experts have asserted that the structure should have been constructed using lighter materials that could have fractured on impact, reducing the force of the collision.

In response to this incident, South Korea’s Transport Ministry made an announcement on Wednesday, stating its commitment to removing the dangerous structure and replacing it with one built from materials that would break apart more easily upon impact.

Furthermore, the ministry plans to examine and either remove or modify similar structures at six other airports across the nation to enhance safety measures.

During the investigation into the plane crash, officials revealed that the plane’s black boxes ceased recording data approximately four minutes before the disaster, which may hinder the inquiry into the underlying causes.

Additionally, air traffic control officials had alerted the pilot to the possibility of bird strikes just two minutes prior to the aircraft issuing a distress signal confirming a bird strike. This preceded the pilot’s decision to attempt an emergency landing.