Air traffic control had ordered a Japanese Coast Guard plane to stay short of the runway shortly before the catastrophic collision with a Japan Airlines passenger plane, it is said.
JAL Flight 516 had received permission from an air traffic controller to enter the runway at Tokyo's Haneda Airport before colliding with the Coast Guard plane and bursting into flames, Japanese broadcaster NHK reported, citing a source.
Five crew members died aboard the Japan Coast Guard (JCG) plane that was scheduled to take off to deliver aid to the city of Niigata after the deadly New Year's quake.
The sole survivor of the Bombardier Dash-8 maritime patrol aircraft was named as Captain Genki Miyamoto, 39. He reportedly pulled himself from the wreckage before radioing for help, telling his base: “The plane exploded on the runway.” I escaped. The [condition of the] other crew members are unknown.'
Fortunately, all 379 passengers and crew on board the commercial JAL flight were successfully evacuated shortly before the plane was ravaged by flames – in what was hailed as a “miracle” by many.
As the sun rose in Japan on Wednesday, shocking images from the accident scene showed the charred remains of the Airbus A350 jet, highlighting how devastating the disaster could have been.
Horrifying images of the A350 jet in daylight show only the wings and piles of ash
An aerial photo shows burnt Japanese Coast Guard aircraft after a collision with the Japan Airlines (JAL) Airbus A350 at Haneda International Airport in Tokyo
All 379 passengers and crew on board the airliner were successfully evacuated shortly before the aircraft was ravaged by flames
An All Nippon Airlines (ANA) plane rolls past the burnt wreckage of the Japan Airlines (JAL) jet on the tarmac the day after the collision
Horrifying images of the A350 jet in daylight show nothing but the wings and piles of ash left after the inferno ripped through it on Tuesday night.
Haneda was closed for hours after the incident and disruptions continue to this day. 100 flights are expected to be canceled, affecting around 19,000 passengers.
The Japan Transport Safety Board has dispatched investigators to the scene, supported by British and French aviation experts, to launch a full investigation into the fatal collision.
At the start of the investigation, JAL said last night that its crew members confirmed the Haneda air traffic controller's permission to land and repeated the order before conducting approach and landing operations.
“There were no issues with the aircraft upon departure from New Chitose Airport and during the flight,” the airline added.
The pilot was cleared to land but likely could not see the smaller Coast Guard Dash-8 plane below as it taxied on the runway, JAL bosses said.
The JAL flight had departed from Shin Chitose Airport in Japan and was landing at Haneda Airport when it collided with the JCG aircraft on Runway C.
Safety experts have hailed the evacuation of JAL Flight 516 before it burst into flames as “nothing short of a miracle” and many praised the cabin crew for allowing all passengers to disembark safely.
The onboard announcement system did not work during the evacuation and crew members had to use megaphones to give instructions, Japan Airlines said in a statement, making the feat even more incredible.
According to Japan Airlines, 14 people on the passenger plane were injured, but none of the injuries appeared to be life-threatening.
An official looks at the wreckage of a Japanese Coast Guard plane on the tarmac at Tokyo International Airport in Haneda. An investigation into the disaster is underway
Foam surrounds the burned-out wreckage of the airliner the morning after it collided with a Coast Guard plane and caught fire
Images from the scene of the accident show the charred wreckage of the Japan Airlines flight the morning after the collision
The burned-out Japan Airlines plane is spotted at Haneda Airport on Wednesday, January 3, 2024
Passengers have told of their terrifying experiences escaping the plane, which caught fire as it skidded across the tarmac just before 6pm (0900 GMT).
Videos and images shared on social media showed passengers screaming in the plane's smoke-filled cabin and running across the runway after escaping down an emergency slide.
Television footage showed flames shooting out of the windows and the plane's nose hitting the ground as rescue workers sprayed it with several water hoses. There was also burning debris on the runway.
Horrifying footage from inside the plane shows passengers covering their faces and struggling to breathe as the cabin filled with smoke following the fire
According to NHK, more than 70 fire engines were deployed to put out the raging inferno.
Wide-angle shots of the scene showed much of the runway in flames and large parts of the tarmac covered in debris.
Meanwhile, footage from inside the jet showed the cabin filling with thick smoke.
Swedish passenger Anton Deibe, 17, told Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet that “the entire cabin was filled with smoke within a few minutes.” We threw ourselves on the ground. Then the emergency doors opened and we rushed through them.
“The smoke in the cabin burned like hell. It was hell. We have no idea where we're going, so we just run into the field. “It was chaos,” added Deibe, who was traveling with his parents and sister.
In one clip, a child's voice can be heard shouting: “Let's get out quickly! Let's get out quickly!”
A Coast Guard Flight MA-722 aircraft, a Bombardier Dash-8 (like the one pictured), collided with Japan Airlines Flight 516
A Japan Airlines plane caught fire at Tokyo's Haneda Airport after colliding with a Coast Guard plane
The plane of Japan Airlines Flight 516 burns at Haneda Airport in Tokyo, Japan on January 2, 2024
“I was wondering what had happened and then I felt the plane tipping sideways on the runway and felt a big jolt,” said Satoshi Yamake, 59, a telecommunications company employee who was on board.
“The flight attendants told us to stay calm and asked us to get off the plane.”
“About 10 minutes after all the passengers got off, I heard an explosion,” said 28-year-old passenger Tsubasa Sawada. “All I can say is it was a miracle, we could have died if we were late.”
It was the first major incident involving serious damage to an A350, one of the newest large passenger aircraft.
Japan's Transport Minister Saito said the cause of the accident was unclear and that the JTSB, police and other authorities were continuing to investigate.
The JTSB aircraft accident board will be joined by representatives from France, where the plane was built, and Britain, where the two Rolls-Royce Trent XWB engines were made. Airbus said it would also send technical advisors.
A view from the airport shows flames rising after the Japan Airlines (JAL) plane crashed
Smoke rises from the JAL plane after it landed on the tarmac outside Haneda Airport on January 2, 2024
Haneda is one of Japan's busiest airports and many people travel over the New Year holidays.
All runways were closed following the accident, causing dozens of other aircraft to be diverted. A transport ministry official said three runways had now resumed operations.
Japan has not suffered a serious traffic accident in decades.
The worst accident occurred in 1985, when a JAL jumbo jet flying from Tokyo to Osaka crashed in the central Gunma region, killing 520 passengers and crew.
This disaster was one of the world's deadliest single-flight aircraft crashes.