Japan Airlines and the Coast Guard both say planes were cleared to enter runway before collision that led to 5 deaths and a raging inferno at Tokyo's busiest airport
Kyodo/via REUTERS
- Five people were killed Tuesday when a Japan Airlines A350 and a Coast Guard plane crashed on the runway.
- Both sides say they were cleared by air traffic control to enter the runway, per the AP.
- But a transport ministry source told NHK the Coast Guard plane was told to stay short of the runway.
The Japan Airlines jet which collided with another aircraft at Tokyo's Haneda Airport on Tuesday had been cleared for landing, the carrier said in a press release.
The Airbus A350 was engulfed in flames after it collided on the runway with a smaller De Havilland Dash 8 operated by the Japan Coast Guard, which was preparing to take off.
According to the Associated Press, the Coast Guard also said its plane had received the go-ahead from aviation officials.
But a source from Japan's transport ministry told NHK, the country's public broadcaster, that air traffic control had instructed the Dash 8 to stay short of the runway.
The Coast Guard said that transport officials were verifying the Dash 8 pilot's claim that he had also been given permission to take off, per the AP.
Five of the six people on board the Dash 8 died as a result of the crash. The pilot survived, but suffered serious injuries.
All 379 people on board the Japan Airlines plane safely evacuated the burning A350 as inflatable slides were deployed. 11 passengers were medically assessed, the airline told Business Insider.
Videos shared on X appeared to show the terror in the cabin, and flames bursting from underneath the wing as it landed.
The Japan Transport Safety Board told reporters on Wednesday that it had recovered flight and voice recorders from the Coast Guard plane, but was still looking for the equipment from the Japan Airlines plane, per Nikkei.
Airbus and France's civil aviation safety agency, BEA, have also said they are sending teams to assist.
The JTSB's investigation is focusing on communication between ATC officials and the two aircraft, according to the AP.