Boeing 747 incident near Seoul, Kr, October 10, 2010
On October 10, 2010, a Boeing 747, registered HL7489, suffered minor damage in an incident near Seoul (Seoul International airport). It was flown under foreign airline rules (Part 129). The NTSB record does not give the injuries.
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this incident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 10, 2010
- Place
- Seoul, South Korea · Seoul International
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- The NTSB record does not give the injuries.
- Weather
- not recorded
- Aircraft
- Boeing 747 · all 747s on the register
- Registration
- HL7489 · no longer on the register
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight · foreign airline rules (Part 129)
The NTSB's narrative preliminary · quoted from the NTSB record
On October 10, 2010, Korean Air Boeing 747-400 registered in Korea as HL7489, experienced an uncontained release of turbine material from the No. 3 engine, a Pratt & Whitney PW4056 engine. About 40 minutes after takeoff, the crew observed engine vibrations and oi pressure indications followed by high exhaust gas temperature. The crew shut down the No. 3 engine and returned to Seoul without further incident. The examination of the engine after landing showed the exhaust sleeve was missing and there was a large hole in the low pressure turbine case that revealed extensive internal damage to the engine. The airplane was operating as Korean Air flight KE023 from Seoul to San Francisco, California. There were no reported injuries to the passengers or crew. The incident is being investigated by the Korean Aviation & Railway Accident Investigation Board (ARAIB). The NTSB has designated a U.S. Accredited Representative to the ARAIB's investigation in accordance with the provisions of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) Annex 13 as the state of manufacture of the airplane and engine. All inquiries should be directed to: Aviation and Railway Accident Investigation Board Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs 281, Gonghang-Dong Gangseo-gu, Seoul, 157-815 Republic of Korea Website: http://www.araib.go.kr
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
The aircraft
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Pratt & Whitney PW4056 (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Operator: Korean Air
The flight
- Departed from: ICN Seoul
- Destination: SFO San Francisco CA
- Flight plan: IFR
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.