Experts are questioning the initial theory that a bird strike caused the deadly crash of Jeju Air flight 7C2216 in South Korea, which killed 179 people.

The Boeing 737-800 was originally thought to have crashed after it collided mid-air with a flock of birds on Sunday, following a series of text messages from a passenger that spread across the internet.

The plane, which had no visible landing gear deployed, was seen skidding down the runway before crashing into a wall and exploding into flames.