Boeing falls after South Korea orders B737-800 inspection

Boeing shares were down more about 2% in afternoon trading Monday, after South Korea ordered an inspection of all 737-800 planes — the model involved in a deadly Jeju Air crash over the weekend — operated by its domestic carriers.

Acting President Choi Sang-mok told the Transport Ministry to perform an emergency safety inspection of the country’s entire airline operation system, while officials on the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport, or MOLIT, said they’d conduct a “comprehensive special inspection of the B737-800.”

Uncertainty surrounds the precise circumstances of the crash, which killed 179 of 181 individuals who were on board the flight on Sunday. The plane landed without the right gear deployed at South Korea’s Muan International Airport, skidded off the runway and smashed right into a wall, bursting into flames. The survivors were two crew members who were pulled from the wreckage.

In a Monday briefing, MOLIT said the aircraft’s pilot had mentioned a “bird strike” a couple of minutes after the airport’s control tower issued a bird activity warning. The pilot also notified the control tower of a “go-around,” referring to an aborted landing attempt, and declared “Mayday,” said Yu Kyung-soo, director of aviation safety policy at MOLIT, in response to an NBC News translation.

Two black boxes were retrieved from the aircraft and have been sent for evaluation. The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board is meanwhile leading a team of U.S. investigators, including the Federal Aviation Administration and Boeing, to help South Korea’s Aviation and Railway Accident Investigation Board with a probe into the crash. Engine manufacturer CFM International, a three way partnership between GE Aerospace and France’s Safran Aircraft Engines, will even be involved within the investigation.

MOLIT officials said Monday they were reviewing the concrete wall that the aircraft hit for its connection to the accident along with the inspection of the 737-800s in South Korean airlines’ fleet.

The favored Boeing narrow-body aircraft has been in operation for nearly three a long time, with development predating the U.S. manufacturer’s troubled 737 Max jets, a later iteration of the model. Aviation experts said it was unlikely that a design flaw played into Sunday’s crash.

The Boeing 737-800 has a robust safety record and is probably the most widely used aircraft with about 4,400 in service, equal to about 17% of the energetic global jet fleet, in response to aviation-data firm Cirium.

It is usually commonly utilized by South Korean low-cost carriers, MOLIT said, with Jeju Air the largest operator with 39 jets. Other operators include T’way Air, Jin Air, Eastar Jet and Air Incheon, while flag carrier Korean Air has two of the model.

“We’ll examine compliance with various regulations, including operational records, inspections, and maintenance conducted before and after flights,” Ju Jong-wan, director of the Aviation Policy Office at MOLIT, said Monday, in response to the NBC News translation.

“We plan to review strengthening regulations regarding bird strikes, identified as a possible explanation for the accident, especially for brand new airports under construction.”

A Boeing spokesperson told CNBC: “We’re involved with Jeju Air regarding flight 2216 and stand able to support them. We extend our deepest condolences to the families who lost family members, and our thoughts remain with the passengers and crew.”

Local media reported that one other Jeju Air aircraft of the identical model returned to South Korea’s Gimpo Airport shortly after takeoff on Monday after reporting issues with its landing gear.

“The model and kind of aircraft has a really strong safety record and over 200 airlines world wide have chosen to fly the Boeing 737-800 within the last yr,” Paul Charles, CEO and travel analyst at The PC Agency, said by email.

“The investigators might want to comb through every maintenance record regarding the 737-800s at Jeju Air to see in the event that they offer up any further clues as to why the aircraft’s landing gear didn’t come down.”

At a press briefing Sunday, head of the management support office at Jeju Air, Song Kyung-hoon, said the airline would support the victims and their families, and that the aircraft was covered by a $1 billion insurance, in response to news site Yonhap.

Song also denied that mechanical faults or inadequate safety preparations played a job within the crash.

“This crash isn’t about any maintenance issues. There will be absolutely no compromise with regards to maintaining aircraft,” Song said.

Shares of Jeju Air hit an all-time low Monday, in response to FactSet, and closed down 8.65%.

— CNBC’s Yeo Boon Ping and Leslie Josephs contributed to this story.