support fittings, drag brace fittings, and transverse beam still attached. Examination of the nose landing gear and the wing- and body-mounted landing gear revealed that they were in the extended position at the time of impact. This section of fuselage structure revealed no evidence of fire damage.
The forward fuselage section approximately from stations 400 to 1120 was located on the upslope of a hill beyond the center fuselage section. The fuselage structure was split above the main deck floor on the right side, and most of the internal structure (frames, stringers, and fractured floor beams) remained attached. The structure exhibited extensive fire damage, including burn-through of the crown area (upper forward fuselage), sidewalls, and floor.
Examination of doors 1L, 1R, 2L, and 2R could not be performed in detail because the airframe structure around these doors was heavily burned, and only portions of the doors were located in the main wreckage site. The door identified as 3L was found closed and locked. Door 3R was found separated from the fuselage, with more than one-half of the door frame area missing because of fuselage separation in this area. According to Korean Air records, the 3L and 3R doors were deactivated before the company took delivery of the airplane. The doors identified as 4L and 4R were found detached from their respective mounted positions, and approximately one-third of the 4R door frame was missing. Door 5L was found closed and locked. Door 5R was found in the open position; however, the door handle was not in the full open position. The upper deck doors were not located; these doors were mounted in an area of the fuselage that sustained extensive fire damage.
The center portion of the fuselage structure, extending from stations 1120 (left side) to 1240 (right ride) and aft to station 1780, was found attached across the crown area and to the right wing by the landing gear beam. The landing gear beam at station 1350 was attached to the fuselage section. The entire center section was found rotated about 180° to the debris path, with the forward end of the section facing the aft body and empennage. The interior was extensively damaged by fire throughout the section. The exterior fuselage skin bore fire damage primarily adjacent to the break, and the right-side fuselage skin was heavily burned between doors 3R and 4R.
The exterior fuselage surface was lightly sooted on the left side of the center section, and the exterior of the right side bore evidence of light soot and areas of fire damage around the periphery of door 5R. The interior was damaged by fire from the main deck floor level to the belly; however, the upper portions of the internal structure were not burned significantly. The aft pressure bulkhead was intact, with the lower portion deformed. The bulkhead was not damaged by fire. The empennage was found separated from the aft fuselage in an upright position.
The empennage had sustained impact damage and some light fire damage. The left- and right-side horizontal stabilizers, their respective elevators, and the vertical fin (with the rudder attached) remained attached in their respective mounted positions.
