379 passengers were safely evacuated after a collision between a Japan Airlines passenger plane and a Coast Guard aircraft at Haneda Airport. Image: Ka23 13, via Wikimedia Commons
All 379 passengers were safely evacuated after a collision between a Japan Airlines (JAL) passenger plane and a Coast Guard aircraft at Haneda airport, Tokyo.
Tragically, five out of the six members of the crew of the smaller Coast Guard aircraft were killed in the collision, and the surviving pilot sustained severe injuries.
The aircraft was delivering aid for those impacted by recent earthquakes across Japan.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida expressed sorrow over the deaths of the Coast Guard crew, and said that efforts were being made to ensure that the incident would not impact the delivery of further earthquake relief supplies.
“This is a great regret as the crew members performed their duties with a strong sense of mission and responsibility for the victims of the disaster area,” said Kishida.
According to Japan’s Fire and Disaster Management Agency, 17 of the passengers were injured, and four were taken to hospital, however no life-threatening injuries were reported.
The fire blazed for over six hours before it could be fully extinguished.
Some passengers shared their experience, describing conditions within the burning plane.
“I was wondering what happened and then I felt the airplane tilted to the side at the runway and felt a big bump,” said Satoshi Yamake, 59, who was on board the flight.
“The flight attendants told us to stay calm and instructed us to get off the plane.”
28-year old Tsubasa Sawada said there was an explosion just ten minutes after evacuating.
“I heard an explosion about 10 minutes after everyone and I got off the plane,” she said.
“I can only say it was a miracle, we could have died if we were late.”
The cause of the crash is still not entirely clear.
An official from JAL told the press that it was their understanding that the flight had received permission to land, but said that exchanges with flight control were still being investigated.
Haneda airport was closed for several hours following the incident, however, all three runways have now resumed their usual operations.
Japan’s transport minister said that authorities would continue to investigate the crash and determine the circumstances which led to the accident.
