Mid-air panic as ANOTHER South Korea Boeing has ‘landing gear malfunction’ hours after deadly crash that killed 179

FLYERS were left panicking in mid-air after another South Korean Boeing suffered a landing gear issue hours after the deadly crash that killed 179.

The unidentified malfunction happened on the same model of plane as the Jeju Air flight that smashed into a runway embankment on Sunday and exploded.

Flyers were left panicking in mid-air after the the Boeing was forced to returnCredit: Getty

The Jeju Air flight took off from Gimpo and returned an hour later (file photo)Credit: Getty

The aborted flight comes just a day after the Jeju Air disaster which killed 179Credit: Reuters

Jeju Air Flight 7C101 departed from Gimpo Airport for Jeju at 6.37am but was found to have the defective landing gear an hour later and forced to return.

After safely landing, some 21 of the 161 passengers on board the Boeing 737-800 decided not to get back onto the flight saying they were too anxious to fly again.

Jeju Air transferred the remaining passengers to a replacement flight of the same model Boeing and departed for Jeju again at 8.30am.

A Jeju Air official said about the incident: “The turnaround was a necessary measure for safe operation.

“We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience caused to our passengers.”

Jeju Air currently operates 39 Boeing 737-800s out of its fleet of 41.

South Korea’s acting president has now ordered an emergency safety inspection of the country’s entire airline industry.

Choi Sang-mok also has asked investigators to disclose the findings of their investigation into the doomed Jeju Air jet promptly.