The BBC's Jean Mackenzie is at the scene of the crash at Muan International Airport.

She says it is now assumed that all the passengers on the plane have died, in the deadliest plane crash on South Korean soil. Two survivors - flight attendants that were located at the back of the plane - were taken to hospital.

The passengers were returning from Thailand, where it is thought many of them had been on holiday over Christmas.

In a statement, South Korea's National Fire Agency says the crash triggered the issuing of response level 3 - which means mobilisation is needed to scale up the response.

More than 1,500 emergency personnel have been deployed to the site and a special disaster zone has been enforced.

The statement, on X, continues: "We will do our best to rescue people and recover from the accident until the end."

Image source, Reuters

The National Fire Agency confirms now that 167 people were killed in the plane crash. Earlier, we also heard that two flight staff were found alive and transported to hospital.

Throughout the day we've been receiving new images from the site of the crash in Muan, South Korea. We're also seeing that relatives of those killed in the crash have gathered at the airport.

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Witnesses that are speaking to South Korea's Yonhap news agency say they saw sparks and heard an explosion before the crash.

Yoo Jae-yong, 41, who was staying near to the airport, tells Yonhap he saw a spark on the right wing shortly before the crash.

Kim Yong-cheol, 70, tells the agency the plane failed to land initially and circled back to try again.

Kim says he saw "black smoke billowing into the sky" after hearing a "loud explosion".

"I saw the plane descending and thought it was about to land when I noticed a flash of light," another witness named Cho adds. "Then there was a loud bang followed by smoke in the air, and then I heard a series of explosions."

Frances Mao
BBC News

Image source, EPA

We heard a little earlier from acting president Choi Sang-mok, who held an emergency meeting in Seoul on Sunday and shortly after declared a special disaster zone in Muan.

He only became leader of the country on Friday - the result of a political crisis that has gripped South Korea for the past three weeks.

Former acting president Han Duck-Soo was impeached on Friday. He was in the role for two weeks, stepping in after President Yoon Suk Yeol was impeached by lawmakers on 14 December following a disastrous attempt to impose martial law.

Choi has now stepped into the breach. On Sunday he instructed his government to use all equipment and personnel available to rescue as many people as possible from the Jeju Air crash site.

“We have a grave situation where a great loss of life occurred after a plane went off the runway in Muan airport," he said.

"I express my deepest condolences to the many victims in the incident. I will do all I can for the injured to quickly recover."

The National Fire Agency has now updated the death toll figure to 151.

Of those, 71 are identified as male and 71 female. The sex of 9 people who died is yet to be confirmed.

As a reminder, 181 people were on board the plane at the time of the crash - including six crew members.

Two flight crew were rescued from the wreckage and taken to hospital.

Jean Mackenzie
Reporting from Muan International Airport

Image source, Jake Kwon/BBC

I’m outside the airport’s perimeter wall where the plane crashed when it overshot the runway.

Above the wall you can see the blackened, charred tail of the plane. This is the only part of the aircraft still intact.

Fire investigators say the plane’s body was so splintered by the explosion that it is unidentifiable.

By the fence small fragments of the aircraft have been gathered up into a pile.

Forensics officers are combing a nearby field looking for bodies as the sun sets.

The fire has long been extinguished but the smell of burning still hangs in the cold air.

A little earlier today, the Korea Railroad Corporation (Korail) issued a notice that they would run a temporary train between Seoul Station and Mokpo Station, about 17 miles (27km) from the airport. The free service will run for families of casualties, government officials and others who need to reach the site.

Korail says the train will make stops along the route, including in Osong and Iksan.

The National Fire Agency now says 127 people died in the crash.

As a reminder, the plane was carrying 181 people at the time of the crash.

In addition, two flight crew were rescued from the wreckage and taken to hospital.

Our correspondents have just arrived to the area near the runway at Muan International Airport. They can see police forensic teams looking through the debris.

Here are a couple of their images from the scene.

Image source, Jake Kwon / BBC

Image source, Jake Kwon / BBC

The flight recorder from the plane has been recovered, according to an official from South Korea's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transportation (Molit).

As we reported earlier, the exact cause of the crash is still being investigated - but fire officials say they were working on the presumption that a bird strike and bad weather had an impact.

During a briefing, a Molit official said the plane's voice recorder has yet to be located.

Image source, Getty Images

There were two Thai nationals on board in addition to the 173 South Koreans on board the flight from Bangkok, Thai government authorities have confirmed.

There were two Thai women on the plane, aged 22 and 45. A spokesperson for the government says details are still being verified.

Earlier, the prime minister of Thailand Paetongtarn Shinawatra wrote in a post on X: "I want to send my condolences to the families of those who died and injured."

Image source, EPA

If you're just joining us, here is a brief overview of what we know about the Jeju Air crash in Muan, South Korea.

• The official death toll form the crashat Muan International Airport stands at 124
• The plane was carrying 181 passengersand crashed as it was landing just after 09:00 local time (00:00 GMT)
• Two people are reported to have been rescued from the wreckage. Both are flight crew who were rushed to hospital this morning
• The fire department says they believe a bird strike and bad weather is the cause of the crash. However, an investigation is ongoing
• Over 1,500 emergency personnel have been deployed for the recovery effort, including 490 fire employees and 455 police officers

• Jeju Air has apologised to families and plane manufacturer Boeing has offered condolences to those affected

This is a developing situation, with the fire department saying earlier that the exact cause of the crash is being investigated. Stay with us and we'll bring you the latest updates as we receive them.

Jake Kwon
Heading to Muan International Airport

The National Fire Agency now says it has recovered 124 bodies from the crash.

Of those, 54 are identified as male and 57 are female. An additional 13 bodies were unable to be gendered.

So far, 1,562 personnel have been deployed to help in recovery effort, including 490 fire department employees and 455 police officers, according to the agency.

Jean Mackenzie
Seoul correspondent

This crash is unusual for South Korea, which has had a good flight safety record in recent years.

If the death toll is confirmed, this will be the worst aviation accident to have ever happened on South Korean soil.

It also appears to be the only fatal crash that Jeju Air has had in its nearly 20 year history.

Jeju Air is Korea’s most popular budget airline, flying to dozens of destinations domestically and across Asia.

The company’s chief executive said at a news conference earlier the airline had no history of accidents. He apologised to the victims’ families.

Image source, Getty Images

Jeju Air claims to be South Korea's "number one" low-cost airline on its website.

The airline was established in 2005 and has approximately 3,000 employees.

Jeju Air serves a number of routes in South Korea, as well as cities in the Asia-Pacific, including in Japan, China, the Philippines and Thailand.

As of January 2024, the airline flies to 44 cities and operates nearly 220 flights a day with its 42 aircraft.

Jake Kwon
Heading to Muan International Airport

This is likely going to be the deadliest airplane crash on South Korean soil.

Until today, the worst airplane related disaster in Korea was the 2002 Air China crash which killed 129 people.

Last time a South Korean airline had a fatal crash was 11 years ago.

In 2013, three people were killed when Asiana Airlines flight crashed while landing in San Francisco International Airport.

Jake Kwon
Heading to Muan International Airport

Acting President Choi Sang-mok has declared a special disaster zone in Muan.

This makes central government funding available to local government and victims.

“We have a grave situation where a great loss of life occurred after a plane went off the runway in Muan airport this morning," Choi says, according to presidential office statement.

"I express my deepest condolences to the many victims in the incident. I will do all I can for the injured to quickly recover. I give my condolences to the victims and give my sincere regards to the bereaved families."