On the morning of July 6, 2013, the Boeing 777-200ER operating the flight crashed on final approach into San Francisco International Airport in the United States.

[3] The investigation by the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) concluded that the accident was caused by the flight crew's mismanagement of the airplane's final approach.

Deficiencies in Boeing's documentation of complex flight control systems and in Asiana Airlines' pilot training were also cited as contributory factors.

[1]: xii, 110  On July 19, 2013, the San Mateo County Coroner's office determined that Ye Mengyuan was still alive before being run over by a rescue vehicle.

[36] San Francisco Fire Department chief Joanne Hayes-White, after checking with two intake points at the airport, told reporters that all on board had been accounted for.

Eighty-two seconds before impact, at an altitude of about 1,600 feet (490 m),[2] the autopilot was turned off, the throttles were set to idle, and the plane was operated manually during final descent.

A preliminary review of FAA radar return data did not show an abnormally steep descent curve,[9][49][50] although the crew did recognize that they began high on the final approach.

The instructor pilot stated that the PAPI indicated a deviation below the glide path at approximately 500 ft (150 m) above ground level, and he attempted to correct it at that time.

[21][40][67] In the initial moments after the crash, the cockpit crew told flight attendants to delay evacuating the aircraft as they were communicating with the tower.

[70] Eyewitnesses to the crash included the cockpit crew and many passengers on board United Airlines Flight 885, a Boeing 747-400 that was holding on Taxiway F, next to the runway.

[73][74] Writing on the Professional Pilots Rumour Network internet forum, the first officer of UA 885 described what he saw:[75][76][77][78] I then noticed at the apparent descent rate and closure to the runway environment the aircraft looked as though it was going to impact the approach lights mounted on piers in the SF Bay.

The tail cone and empennage of the 777 impacted the bulkhead seawall and departed the airplane and the main landing gear sheared off instantly.Passengers and others praised the flight attendants' conduct after the crash.

[61] Based on a preliminary review of FDR data, the NTSB stated there was no anomalous behavior of the engines, the autopilot, the flight director, or the autothrottle.

"[10][88] Hersman has repeatedly emphasized it is the pilot's responsibility to monitor and maintain correct approach speed[89] and that the crew's actions in the cockpit are the primary focus of the investigation.

In response, the captain selected an inappropriate autopilot mode (FLCH, or Flight Level Change) which resulted in the autothrottle no longer controlling airspeed.

[93] The NTSB further determined that the pilot's faulty mental model of the airplane's automation logic led to his inadvertent deactivation of automatic airspeed control.

Insufficient flight crew monitoring of airspeed indications during the approach likely resulted from expectancy, increased workload, fatigue, and automation reliance.

[1]: 129 Shortly after the accident, the US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) used Twitter and YouTube to inform the public about the investigation and quickly publish quotes from press conferences.

One hour after that, the NTSB announced via Twitter that officials would hold a press conference at Reagan Airport Hangar 6 before departing for San Francisco.

"[100] Answering ALPA's criticism, NTSB spokeswoman Kelly Nantel also said the agency routinely provided factual updates during investigations.

[102] The South Korean government announced in a Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) statement that it would investigate whether the crew followed procedures and how they were trained.

[108][109][110] Shortly after the accident, Congresswoman Jackie Speier stated that she would consider legislation to improve airline safety by requiring increased pilot training and mandatory drug and alcohol testing for international crews.

[111] The crash damaged Asiana's reputation[66][112][113][114] and that of South Korea's aviation industry following years of apparent improvements after a series of aircraft disasters in the 1980s and early 1990s.

[118][119] On July 9, Yoon apologized directly to the parents of the two victims,[120] then flew aboard Flight 214 to San Francisco, the same route as the crashed aircraft, to meet with NTSB officials.

[129] "The measures could include [changing] rules on training flights if needed," Deputy Minister for Civil Aviation Choi Jeong-ho told reporters.

"[134] On May 9, 2014, the San Francisco Fire Department firefighter who drove the vehicle that ran over the girl in the above incident filed a lawsuit against the City and County of San Francisco alleging they were treated as a scapegoat by fire department command staff "to minimize and downplay broader failures within the SFFD [response]" by pushing responsibility for the incident onto the individual.

[131] On July 15, 2013, two Korean passengers filed a lawsuit against Asiana Airlines in a California federal court for "an extensive litany of errors and omissions" and improper crew training and supervision.

[139] On the same day, 83 passengers filed a petition for discovery in Chicago, alleging a possible failure of the autothrottle system and malfunctioning evacuation slides and seat belts.

[147] Mayday: Air Crash Investigation mentioned Asiana Airlines Flight 214 in its Season 13 episode, "Getting Out Alive," as part of a series of accidents and discussion of how passengers were able to escape.

[149] San Francisco television station KTVU fell victim to a prank[150][151][152] which led news anchor Tori Campbell to report the names of the pilots as "Captain Sum Ting Wong," "Wi Tu Lo," "Ho Lee Fuk," and "Bang Ding Ow," in the immediate aftermath of the crash.