KUALA LUMPUR – It was a scary ordeal for all 367 passengers when a Japan Airlines’ (JAL) Airbus plane was engulfed in flames after colliding with a coast guard aircraft today at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport, one of the world’s busiest transit hubs.
The images on public broadcaster NHK showed the plane was taxiing briskly along the runway before it exploded in huge orange flames.
A Japan Airlines Airbus A350 with 367 people on board has collided with a Japanese coast guard plane while landing at Tokyo-Haneda Airport. The aircraft is on fire with rescue operations underway. pic.twitter.com/gzaqg2guqK
— The STRATCOM Bureau (@OSPSF) January 2, 2024
Television footage showed flames coming out the Airbus’ windows and the nose was on the ground as workers tried to put out the blaze.
According to early reports, the passengers were evacuated, though it is unclear how many crew members are onboard.
The collision also left burning debris along the runway.
A Japan Airlines passenger plane caught fire upon landing at Tokyo's Haneda Airport. #HanedaAirport #JapanAirlines pic.twitter.com/jxAj6oMiJ8
— TikLeak.com News (@tikleaknews) January 2, 2024
JAL told NHK that Flight 516 was coming into Tokyo from New Chitose Airport in Hokkaido.
More than 70 fire engines were being deployed to the scene.
Later, a Japan coast guard official told NHK that six people were on board its plane, which was preparing to fly to Niigata for quake relief.
The Tokyo Fire Department said a crew member was evacuated and five have been found.
However, their conditions are unknown.
On the other side of the island, a 7.6-magnitude quake hit the Sea of Japan at about 4pm (3pm Malaysia time) yesterday, triggering tsunami waves more than 1m high and killing at least 48 people in Ishikawa Prefecture.
Japan’s worst ever aviation accident was in 1985, when a JAL jumbo jet flying from Tokyo to Osaka crashed in the Gunma region, killing 520 passengers and crew. – January 2, 2024