Investigators comb South Korean runway, searching for answers in deadly Jeju Air plane crash

A team of U.S. investigators arrived in South Korea to assist local aviation officials as they comb the wreckage of the Jeju Air Boeing 737-800 aircraft that crashed Sunday, killing 179 people.

Three members of the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board are leading the U.S. team, which also includes advisers from the Federal Aviation Administration, Boeing and CFM International, a jet-engine manufacturer. Some of those advisers will be on site and others will remain in the U.S., the NTSB said.

"Additional NTSB investigative staff are standing by to assist if needed, including specialists in recorders, powerplants, and survival factors, among other specialties," the board said in a statement.

Investigators could be seen Tuesday moving around the crash site at Muan International Airport. Some were on their hands and knees, combing for forensic evidence. Others were walking the runway, scouring the area and collecting pieces of the plane.

Spread over the crash site were twisted plane seats, torn in-flight magazines, pieces of clothing and any number of other small pieces of debris.

Jeju Air Flight 2216 was landing just before 9 a.m. when the plane went off the runway and crashed into a wall. There were a total of 175 passengers and six crew members aboard the Boeing 737, which had taken off from Bangkok, Thailand. A total of 179 people aboard the flight were killed, with two flight attendants -- a man and a woman -- being the only survivors of the crash.

In the wake of the deadly plane crash, local officials are also now investigating similar aircraft models that are operating in airports around the country.

Officials were continuing to identify the victims of the crash. Five of the remains were still unidentified as of Tuesday, local officials said. The remains of four individuals being transported to their respective families for funeral.

Authorities are conducting a full investigation into over 100 aircraft that are the same model, B737-800. The planes are currently operating in six local airlines, officials said.

The investigation includes reviewing the maintenance history of the engines, landing gears and the aircraft's operation records.

"There are no plans to suspend operations, but they will examine those parts once more and check them thoroughly during the inspection process," said Song Kyung-hoon, head of Jeju Air's Management Support Division.

The Muan International Airport runway will be closed for the investigation until Jan. 7, officials said.

The two flight attendants who survived the crash were recovering at separate hospitals in Seoul on Monday, according to the Korean Ministry of Land Infrastructure and Transport.

Neither survivor had life-threatening injuries, the ministry said, adding that both had awoken in the hospital without a clear recollection of what had happened after they heard a blast during the landing.

The man, who was identified only by his surname Lee, was receiving treatment for fractures in an intensive care unit. He was alert and speaking with medical staff, Ju Woong, director of the Ewha Womans University Seoul Hospital, said at a press conference on Monday.

"[Lee is] fully able to communicate," Woong added. "There's no indication yet of memory loss or such."

The woman, a 25-year-old flight attendant named Koo, was also recovering, though not in intensive care, according to hospital staff and officials, as well as the Korean Ministry of Land Infrastructure and Transport.

ABC News' Sam Sweeney and Joe Simonetti contributed to this report.