Five lifeless as planes collide at Tokyo airport

All 379 passengers and crew of a Japan Airlines aircraft miraculously escaped from a fireplace following a collision with a Coast Guard plane at Tokyo’s Haneda airport, however 5 of the six crew of the Coast Guard aircraft have been killed.

The Coast Guard stated the collision concerned one in every of its planes that was headed to Niigata airport on Japan’s west coast to ship assist to these caught up in a strong earthquake that struck on New Year’s Day, killing at the least 48 individuals.

“I felt a boom like we had hit something and jerked upward the moment we landed,” a passenger on the Japan Airlines flight informed Kyodo news company. “I saw sparks outside the window and the cabin filled with gas and smoke.”

Live footage on public broadcaster NHK confirmed the Japan Airlines (JAL) Airbus A350 plane bursting into flames because it skidded down the tarmac shortly earlier than 6:00 pm (0900 GMT).

It was later overwhelmed by the blaze regardless of feverish efforts by rescue crews to regulate the fireplace. But not earlier than all 367 passengers and 12 crew have been evacuated.

【羽田空港 日本航空の機体が炎上 海保機と衝突か 全員脱出の情報あり 確認中】
ここまでの情報をまとめました。（午後6時40分ごろ放送）https://t.co/UGWveQ1hVi#nhk_video pic.twitter.com/TbGn28hr3m

— NHKニュース (@nhk_news) January 2, 2024

Japan’s Transport Minister Tetsuo Saito confirmed that 5 of the coast guard plane’s crew had died. The captain of the plane, a Bombardier-built Dash-8 maritime patrol aircraft, was injured.

Broadcaster NHK, citing the Tokyo Fire Department, stated at the least 17 of the individuals evacuated from the passenger aircraft have been injured.

A spokesperson at Japan Airlines stated its plane had departed from New Chitose airport on the mountainous northern island of Hokkaido.

Transport Minister Saito stated the reason for the accident was unclear and the Japan Transport Safety Board (JTSB), police and different departments would proceed to analyze. The collision occurred shortly after touchdown.

“The transport ministry will attempt to resume the operations of Haneda airport as soon as possible,” Saito stated.

Haneda is among the two major airports serving the Japanese capital.

JAL’s rival Japanese airline ANA stated it had cancelled 112 home flights departing and touchdown at Haneda for the remainder of Tuesday as a result of runway shutdown.