Korean Air Lines Flight 015
Korean Air Lines Flight 015 landed short at Seoul in 1980. Explore the landing and fire, aircraft details and conflicting historical fatality counts.
On 19 November 1980, Korean Air Lines Flight 015 crashed during landing at Seoul-Gimpo Airport. The aircraft, Boeing 747-2B5B HL7445, had flown from Los Angeles via Anchorage with 226 people aboard.
What happened
In restricted visibility, the aircraft touched down about 90 metres short of runway 14 and struck an embankment. The impact damaged the main landing gear. The aircraft slid along the runway and was subsequently destroyed by fire.
The Bureau of Aircraft Accidents Archives attributes the accident to an approach continued below the glide path without visual contact with the ground.
Why the death toll differs between sources
The archive records 14 fatalities, comprising eight passengers and six crew. A contemporary United Press International dispatch dated 20 November reports 15 deaths, citing government officials after further bodies were found.
This page preserves that discrepancy rather than presenting one figure as undisputed. The overview therefore shows 14 - 15 reported. Occupant and injury breakdowns also vary in historical summaries.
Safety context
The accident is an example of the consequences of landing short in poor visibility, followed by a survivability challenge from fire. The diagram is an explanatory illustration, not a surveyed reconstruction of the accident site.
Related
Sources
Facts on this page are checked against the primary and institutional references below.
- Crash of Boeing 747-2B5B HL7445 at Seoul - Bureau of Aircraft Accidents Archives
- Contemporary report of a death toll of 15 - United Press International
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