Silent Attack : Bird Strike

Directed by Lee Yun-seok

In December 2024, 179 people died in the Jeju Air disaster at Muan International Airport. The crash began with a bird strike. Public anger erupted, calling it a "foreseen tragedy", warnings about building an airport in a major migratory bird habitat had been ignored. The filmmakers interviewed bereaved families, witnesses, pilots, mechanics, air-traffic controllers, ecologists, and ornithologists to trace the root causes. They also examined Seattle Airport in the U.S., the first to employ ecologists to manage surrounding ecosystems and prioritize coexistence. Despite the tragedy, South Korea is pushing new airports into critical bird habitats for political gain, even as existing airports run deficits. Silent Attack asks, who is attacking whom? Are we the sky's owners, or the invaders? The silent attack continues. We may be striking not only birds, but ourselves.