5 crew members died, 379 passengers escaped

Live video on public broadcaster NHK of the accident on Tuesday (January 2) showed the Airbus A350 on fire as it skidded down the runway just before 6 p.m. local time.

Tokyo flight 5 crash crew killed 379 passengers miraculously escaped — The Airbus A350 commercial aircraft burst into flames shortly after colliding with a Japan Coast Guard plane. Photo: Kyodo

Coast Guard aircraft prepare to arrive for earthquake relief

Videos and images shared on social media showed passengers screaming inside the plane's smoke-filled cabin and running across the tarmac after escaping via the evacuation slides. At one point, a child's voice can be heard shouting: "Let's get out quickly! Let's get out quickly!"

All 367 passengers and 12 crew of the Airbus A350 commercial aircraft were evacuated from the burning plane, but the fire was not extinguished until after midnight.

“I was wondering what had happened when I felt the plane tilting to one side on the runway and felt a big impact,” said Satoshi Yamake, 59, a telecommunications company employee who was on the plane. “The flight attendants told us to calm down and asked us to get off the plane.”

Fourteen people on board the passenger plane were injured, but none of their injuries were life-threatening, Japan Airlines said. The plane had departed from New Chitose Airport on Japan's northern island of Hokkaido.

Meanwhile, Transport Minister Tetsuo Saito confirmed that five crew members of the Japan Coast Guard were killed, while the 39-year-old captain escaped but was injured.

The A350 was attempting a normal landing when it collided with a Dash-8 maritime patrol aircraft on the runway, a ministry official said. There were no reports of engine or other problems on the plane before the landing, the official said.

Japan's coast guard says its aircraft are heading to Niigata on Japan's west coast to provide relief to those affected by a powerful earthquake that struck on New Year's Day, which has now killed at least 55 people.

Passengers escaped by leaving their luggage behind during evacuation

Paul Hayes, director of aviation safety at UK-based aviation consultancy Ascend by Cirium, noted that no one appeared to have left the plane with carry-on luggage.

This is something safety agencies always warn about when it comes to plane crashes. "The crew certainly did a fantastic job... It's a miracle that all the passengers got out," he said.

Passenger Tsubasa Sawada, 28, said: “I heard the explosion about 10 minutes after everyone and I got off the plane. I can only say it was a miracle, we could have died if we had evacuated late.”

Tokyo flight 5 crash, 379 passengers miraculously escaped death, photo 2 — All crew members and passengers of the A350 were safely evacuated. Photo: Kyodo

Japan Airlines said the aircraft's announcement system was not working during the evacuation, so crew members used loudspeakers to give instructions.

Kaoru Ishii, who was waiting outside the terminal for her 29-year-old daughter, said she initially thought the flight was delayed until her daughter called to explain.“She said the plane was on fire and she escaped through the slide,” Ishii said.

Cause of the accident is unclear

Transport Minister Saito said the cause of the accident was unclear and the Japan Transport Safety Board, police and other agencies would continue to investigate.

Tokyo flight 5 crash crew killed 379 passengers miraculously escaped death photo 3 — The plane was not extinguished until midnight. Photo: AP

The JTSB has also opened an investigation, with representatives from France, where the plane was built, and the UK, where the two Rolls-Royce Trent XWB engines were made. Airbus said it was also sending technical advisers to the scene.

Haneda, one of two main airports serving Japan's capital Tokyo, was closed for several hours after the crash, but transport ministry officials said three runways were back in operation.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said authorities were working to ensure the accident did not affect the delivery of earthquake relief supplies and expressed sorrow over the death of the crew of the Coast Guard plane.

“This is extremely regrettable as the crew carried out their duties with a high sense of mission and responsibility towards the victims in the disaster area,” he said.

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ykTZ6w1LvY[/embed]

Hoang Anh (according to Kyodo, Reuters, AP)

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