Eyewitnesses recall hearing multiple ‘explosions’ as plane skidded off runway and crashed killing at least 176 people

Onlookers who witnessed a passenger plane crash at an airport in South Korea have described hearing 'explosions' before the aircraft slammed into a concrete wall.

At least 176 people out of a total of 181 on board have now been declared dead in what is South Korea's worst domestic civil aviation disaster ever, after the 15-year-old Boeing 737-800 jet crash landed at Muan International Airport, about 180 miles south of Seoul.

The incident took place at 9.03am local time after the front landing gear of the plane apparently failed to deploy, forcing the pilot to make a crash landing.

Footage from the airport showed the plane skidding across the runway before it collided with the wall, where it was later seen engulfed in smoke and flames.

Recovery efforts are ongoing at the time of writing (December 29), and witnesses have now come forward to describe what they saw and heard as the crash took place.

According to the Yonhap News Agency, 41-year-old Yoo Jae-yong was staying at a rental house near the airport when he saw the Jeju Air plane approaching the runway.

He remembered seeing a spark on the plane's right wing, and recalled: "I was telling my family there was a problem with the plane when I heard a loud explosion."

Another witness, identified only the name Cho, was out talking a walk a couple of miles away from the airport when he saw the plane making its descent.

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

Unusual sounds were also reported by 70-year-old Kim Yong-cheol, who heard the sound of 'metallic scraping' twice about five minutes before the crash.

Witnesses reported hearing 'scraping' and 'explosions' (Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images)

Kim watched the plane struggle to make its initial landing, forcing it to ascend again for a second attempt. He then heard a 'loud explosion' and saw 'black smoke billowing into the sky'.

Officials have shared suspicions that a bird strike may have been the cause of the crash after the airport's control tower warned the plane of a bird strike.

The tower also gave the plane's pilot permission to land in a different area.

The plane's black box has been recovered to provide officials with data relating to the time of the crash, and Senior Transport Ministry official Joo Jong-wan has said that officials are also looking for the cockpit voice recording device.