As Japan Airlines Flight 516 was landing, it collided with the Coast Guard plane,[2] immediately igniting fires that destroyed both aircraft.[3] Five of the six crew on board the Dash 8 died in the collision, with only the captain surviving. Everyone on board the A350 survived.[4] Investigations have determined that Japan Airlines Flight 516 was given landing clearance, while the Coast Guard aircraft did not have permission to be on the runway.[5][6][7][8]
This accident marked the first major accident and hull loss for Japan Airlines since Flight 123 in 1985, and also the first major accident and hull loss of an Airbus A350.[9][10][11][12]
Aircraft
The JAL aircraft involved in the accident was an Airbus A350-941,[Note 2] operating as Flight 516, manufacturer serial number 538, and registered as JA13XJ. The aircraft was just over two years old at the time of the collision, first flying on 20 September 2021 and delivered to JAL on 10 November.[13][14][15]
The Japan Coast Guard aircraft involved was a De Havilland Canada DHC-8-315Q MPA, manufacturer serial number 656, nicknamed Mizunagi-1 (Japanese: みずなぎ1号), and registered as JA722A. The aircraft was approximately 16 years old, first flying in November 2007, and acquired by the Coast Guard in March 2009.[16] The aircraft had been damaged in the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami while parked at Sendai Airport, and was the only aircraft damaged there to be repaired afterwards.[1] The Dash 8 was fitted with a Mode S-capable transponder but was reportedly not equipped with ADS-B; this meant the aircraft's position and speed were not reported by the aircraft itself and instead relied on multilateration by on-ground receivers.[14][17][18]
Accident
Airport layout with the location of the runway collision and the wreckage of both aircraft.[19]
Coast Guard aircraft
The Japan Coast Guard aircraft, carrying six crew members, was transporting emergency supplies to an airbase in Niigata in response to the 2024 Noto earthquake, which had occurred the day before.[20] It was one of four aircraft deployed by the government to provide help to the affected areas.[21]
The aircraft was reported to be stationary on the runway for around 40 seconds before the collision. Genki Miyamoto (宮本 元気, Miyamoto Genki), the captain, reported that the back of the aircraft suddenly caught fire shortly after he had increased the engine power[22][23] before exploding following the collision.[24] He survived with serious injuries, while the five remaining crew members were confirmed dead by the Tokyo Fire Department.[25][26][27][28][29] The wreckage of the Coast Guard aircraft was left several hundred metres from the final stopping point of the JAL plane.[30]
JAL 516
Japan Airlines Flight 516 (ICAO flight number JAL516) departed New Chitose Airport at 16:27 JST (07:27 UTC) en route to Haneda Airport.[31] The flight landed after dark with light and variable winds, visibility greater than 10 km (6.2 mi), few clouds at 2,000 feet (610 m), and a scattered cloud layer at 9,000 feet (2,700 m).[14]
At approximately 17:47 JST (08:47 UTC), JAL516 collided with a Japan Coast Guard Dash 8, identified by its call sign and registration number JA722A, while landing on runway 34R at Haneda Airport.[31][32]CCTV footage shows a fireball erupting from the aircraft, with the JAL plane leaving a fiery trail as it travelled down the runway[20] for about 1 km (0.62 mi) before coming to a stop[33][34] on the grass apron beside the runway.[35] Smoke filled the A350's cabin quickly after the accident.[36][37] Firefighters arrived at the scene in about three minutes, with about 70 fire trucks responding.[20] According to the Tokyo Fire Department, the fire was largely extinguished shortly after midnight,[38] by which time the plane's structure had collapsed due to the intensity of the flames.[24] The collision and subsequent fire were captured by CCTV cameras in Terminal 2.[39] After the collision, the ADS-B signals, except for position information, from the aircraft were received for about one minute.[40] Firefighters later said that the fire spread from the vicinity of the plane's left engine.[41]
According to a statement by a JAL spokesman, the three pilots felt a sudden shock immediately after landing and lost control of the aircraft while trying to maintain its course along the runway. They were unaware that a fire had broken out on board until they were informed by a cabin attendant that the left engine was on fire,[42][43] and one of the pilots later said that he had seen an object that had caused him concern before the collision. However, the three pilots denied that they had visually confirmed the presence of the Coast Guard aircraft.[22]
With the right engine still running, all 367 passengers and 12 crew members on board JAL516 evacuated through three of the plane's eight evacuation slides, located at doors 1L, 1R and 4L.[2][44] JAL said the plane's in-flight announcement system had failed, leading the crew to give instructions through megaphones or by shouting.[10] Forty-three foreign nationals[45] and eight children were on board.[46] Two pets, a dog and a cat, were checked in on board and died.[6] Seventeen people on board suffered injuries.[47][48] It was noted that no one exited with hand luggage, a factor that facilitated a smoother evacuation.[49] Another factor cited in the survival of those on board was that the aircraft, one of the first commercial models to be made of composite carbon fibre materials, appeared to have withstood the initial impact of the collision and fire relatively well.[44] The plane was fully evacuated at 18:05 JST (09:05 UTC),
20 minutes after landing;[33] according to Japan's public broadcaster NHK, the captain was the last person to leave the plane.[50]
Paul Hayes, the director of air safety at Ascend, a British-based aviation consultancy, told Reuters, "The cabin crew must have done an excellent job. It was a miracle that all the passengers got off considering the wreckage shown in many images.[8]
View of the area around the wreckage of JAL Flight 516. Some fallen debris can be seen in the right-most portion of the photo. (January 3, 2024)
The wreckage of the Coast Guard plane (January 3, 2024)
Aftermath
A sign indicating the suspension of ANA flights inside Terminal 2 of Haneda Airport
Operations at Haneda Airport
Although all occupants on the Airbus A350 were evacuated with few minor injuries, the plane was destroyed in the post-crash fire and was written off, with Japan Airlines estimating the operational losses from its hull loss at 15 billion yen ($105 million), which is set to be covered by insurance.[22] The aircraft following immediately behind Flight 516—JAL166, a Boeing 737-800 approaching runway 34R—had to perform a go-around at 1,150 feet (350 m) before diverting to Narita International Airport. There were also several flights waiting for takeoff; most returned to the terminal after the runways were closed.[14]
The accident occurred as millions were traveling for the New Year holidays, one of the busiest travel periods of the year. All runways at Haneda Airport were temporarily closed following the accident, and many flights were diverted to nearby Narita Airport, as well as Chubu Centrair International Airport and Kansai International Airport.[51][52] Others were cancelled as the result of the accident,[53][54] with All Nippon Airways registering 112 domestic flight cancellations for the rest of the day[55] and JAL cancelling 116 domestic flights.[34] At around 21:30 JST (12:30 UTC), Haneda Airport's remaining three runways were reopened according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT).[56] Cancellations continued through 7 January, by which time at least 1,227 flights and 221,910 passengers had been affected.[57] The accident reduced Haneda Airport's flight capacity to 70%.[58] In response to these delays, JR group set up supplemental Shinkansen services on the Tokaido, Hokuriku, and Tohoku Shinkansen routes on 4 January out to Osaka, Kanazawa, and Hokkaido respectively.[59][60] These extra services were offered without seat reservations.[60]
Workers began clearing the wreckage of the Coast Guard aircraft on the afternoon of 4 January, followed by that of JAL 516 on the morning of 5 January.[61] The clearance operations, which included restoring damaged sections of pavement on the runway, were completed on 7 January.[62] The affected runway reopened to traffic on 8 January.[63] Operations at the airport were expected to fully normalize on 10 January.[57] Lighting damaged by the accident was also expected to be repaired by February 2024. The MLIT also warned of additional aircraft flying over Chiba Prefecture at low altitudes after the collision rendered low-altitude routes over central Tokyo unusable.[64]
On 12 January, the Japan Coast Guard suspended personnel at the Haneda Air Station, which has jurisdiction over the coastal waters between Ibaraki and Shizuoka Prefectures, from operating the facility's two helicopters and three remaining fixed-wing aircraft as part of efforts to ensure safety and psychological care to the staff, delegating the operation of the station's air assets to personnel from other Coast Guard facilities.[65] Base personnel received retraining at Chitose Air Station in Hokkaido, while helicopter flights resumed on 1 March. Full operations at the base fully resumed on 28 March.[66][67]
Following reports that the air traffic controllers were unaware that the Coast Guard aircraft had entered the runway without clearance, the MLIT installed a new air traffic controller post on 6 January that would provide constant monitoring of aircraft at the airport.[69] The use of the phrase "number 1" in air traffic control parlance was also prohibited after the investigation suggested that the usage of the term led the Coast Guard pilot to think he had clearance to enter the runway.[70] Brighter colors for stop lines before runway entrances were also to be introduced in Haneda and other airports.[71]
Commemorations
The remains of the fatalities aboard the Coast Guard aircraft were subjected to an autopsy before being returned to their families on 8 January. A tribute was held by their colleagues at the Japan Coast Guard base in Haneda.[63]
JAL announced that it was considering preserving the wreckage of Flight 516 to remind employees of the importance of prioritizing safety, similar to what it had done with the wreckage of Japan Air Lines Flight 123 which crashed in 1985.[72]
Reactions
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida extended his condolences to the dead, referring to their service to the victims of the 2024 Noto earthquake.[73] Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike also expressed sadness over "the fact that 'one disaster led to another disaster'".[74][75]
IATA posted on Twitter extending its condolences to the passengers and crew on board the two aircraft. They also expressed condolences regarding the previous day's earthquake.[76]
Airbus released a statement confirming it was in communication with JAL and would "communicate further details when available".[77][78] It also said that it was sending specialists to help in the investigation.[24]
JAL released a statement confirming the events of the runway collision and sent condolences to the families and friends of the five people killed. It also apologized for the inconvenience and distress caused to passengers, friends, families, and everyone affected by the accident, and gave assurances that it would cooperate with the investigation.[79] JAL also offered full refunds and free rebooking up until 31 January for passengers who had already booked flights scheduled between 2 January and 1 April.[80]
The Japan Federation of Civil Aviation Workers' Union for Air Safety (JFAS) said that, in line with ICAO Annex 13, finding out the facts should be the first priority, adding that in many cases police intervention prevented the identification of the cause of aircraft accidents.[81]
On 17 January, both JAL president Yuji Akasaka and the head of the Japan Coast Guard Shohei Ishii apologized for their aircraft's involvement in the collision.[82][83]
On 3 January, the MLIT released the transcript of air traffic control communication, covering the last 4 minutes and 27 seconds before the crash.[93][94] It showed that prior to the accident, air traffic controllers cleared the JAL aircraft to land on runway 34R,[95] while the Coast Guard aircraft was instructed to hold short of the runway at a holding point on taxiway C5.[68] NHK, however, citing a source within the Coast Guard, reported that the pilot of the Coast Guard plane claimed to have received clearance to take off.[30] Air traffic controllers later told MLIT officials that they had not noticed the Coast Guard plane moving onto the runway, adding that they were preoccupied with assisting other aircraft.[96] An MLIT official said that the pilot of the Coast Guard aircraft may not have heard the air traffic control tower authorizing the JAL aircraft for landing as at the time, his radio could have been set on the same frequency as that of ground control.[97] Another MLIT official also said that the Coast Guard was not informed of measures introduced by a government task force to prevent airport runway incursions following similar accidents in 2007.[98] Japanese police were reportedly investigating possible professional negligence, including fatigue and staffing levels, that may have caused the accident.[24][99]
On 24 June, the MLIT released the first interim report.[102] The investigation pointed out issues such as the lack of personnel gathered at the airport and the delay with the guidance of emergency vehicles. Moreover, it was revealed that over 100 emergency vehicles were waiting to enter the airport and several ambulances carrying injured passengers were unable to leave for about 30 minutes. For future measures, the ministry is scheduled to revise its emergency guidance by August and also requested the number of airport staff that are available to respond to such emergencies on holidays and at night be increased.[48][103]
^The 3 in the suffix denotes that this aircraft was a -300 series variant of the Dash 8, 15 designates that the aircraft was equipped with Pratt & Whitney Canada PW123E engines, Q denotes that it was fitted with the active noise and vibration suppression system, and MPA designates that it was equipped as a maritime patrol aircraft.
^ abThe 9 in the suffix denotes that this aircraft was a -900 series variant of the A350; 41 is the Airbus type code designating it was equipped with Rolls-Royce Trent XWB engines.
References
^ abかいほニュース No.49 [Kaiho News No.49] (PDF) (in Japanese). Japan Coast Guard. 1 May 2012. Archived(PDF) from the original on 2 January 2024. Retrieved 2 January 2024.
^ ab"JAL機炎上のもうひとつの懸念「預けられていた動物はいたのか」広報は「2件のお預かりがありました」" [Another concern about the JAL plane fire: "Were there any animals left behind?" A spokesperson said, "There were 2 animals left behind."] (in Japanese). Yahoo! News. 3 January 2024. Archived from the original on 3 January 2024. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
^"【速報】羽田空港で日本航空機と接触した海上保安庁の航空機から 1人が脱出 5人安否不明" [[Breaking News] One person escapes from a Japan Coast Guard aircraft that came into contact with a Japanese aircraft at Haneda Airport; safety of five people unknown.]. FNN prime online (in Japanese). 2 January 2024. Archived from the original on 2 January 2024. Retrieved 2 January 2024.
^"【速報】海保の航空機の乗員6人のうち2人死亡 機長は重体 衝突とみられる日本航空新千歳発羽田行き516便も羽田空港で炎上 乗客は全員避難との情報" [[Breaking news] Two of the six crew members of the Japan Coast Guard plane are dead, the captain is in critical condition, Japan Airlines Flight 516 from New Chitose to Haneda, which is thought to have been involved in a collision, also burst into flames at Haneda Airport. All passengers were evacuated.]. Yahoo Japan (in Japanese). 2 January 2024. Archived from the original on 2 January 2024. Retrieved 2 January 2024.
^"日本航空 機体炎上"全員脱出" 海保機の5人死亡 乗客14人けが" ["Japan Airlines plane catches fire, everyone evacuates," 5 people on Japan Coast Guard plane killed, 14 passengers injured.]. NHK (in Japanese). 3 January 2024. Archived from the original on 2 January 2024. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
^ ab"羽田空港衝突事故 消防医療検証 休暇中で職員など十分集まらず" [Haneda Airport collision: Not enough fire and medical staff gathered due to the holiday]. NHK (in Japanese). 28 June 2024. Archived from the original on 28 June 2024. Retrieved 28 June 2024.
^ ab【中継・速報】日本航空の機体炎上"全員脱出"海保機は不明も [[Relay / Breaking news] Two of the six crew members of the Japan Coast Guard plane are dead, the captain is in critical condition, Japan Airlines Flight 516 from New Chitose to Haneda, which is thought to have been involved in a collision, also burst into flames at Haneda Airport. All passengers were evacuated.]. NHK News. Japan Broadcasting Corporation. 2 January 2024. Archived from the original on 2 January 2024. Retrieved 2 January 2024.
^"羽田空港 事故のあったC滑走路を除き閉鎖解除 国交省" [Haneda Airport closure lifted except for Runway C where the accident occurred Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism]. NHK News (in Japanese). 2 January 2024. Archived from the original on 2 January 2024. Retrieved 2 January 2024.
^"北海道・東北新幹線「はやて546号」1/4も運転へ - 臨時特急列車も" [Special Operation of Hayate No.546 on the Hokkaido/Tohoku Shinkansen and Additional Express Service on 4 January]. MyNavi Corporation. 4 January 2024. Archived from the original on 4 January 2024. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
^ ab"Uターンラッシュがピーク 羽田空港事故の影響も 200便以上欠航" [U-Turn Rush Peaks: More than 200 Flights Canceled due to Haneda Airport accident]. NHK News. 3 January 2024. Archived from the original on 5 January 2024. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
^"羽田航空機衝突、海保羽田航空基地が事故機と同型機の飛行をあす再開" [Japan Coast Guard's Haneda Air Base to resume flights of aircraft of the same crashed model at Haneda Airport tomorrow]. Yomiuri Shimbun (in Japanese). 27 March 2024. Retrieved 27 June 2024.
^"羽田基地、飛行機の運用再開 衝突事故で停止―海保" [Haneda Air Base resumes aircraft operations after collision accident - Japan Coast Guard]. Jiji Press (in Japanese). 28 March 2024. Retrieved 27 June 2024.
^ ab"羽田空港事故 管制官 "日航機に進入許可 海保機は手前まで"" [The Haneda Airport Accident - The air traffic controller says "I gave permission for landing to the JAL aircraft, while permitting the JCG's plane to approach in front of the runway."]. NHK news. Japan Broadcasting Corporation. 3 January 2024. Archived from the original on 2 January 2024. Retrieved 2 January 2024.
^"海保５人死亡「痛恨の極み」、日航「着陸許可が出ていたと認識」…小池都知事「災害が災害を呼んでしまうことは残念」" [Five people killed in the Japan Coast Guard: "Extremely saddened"; Japan Airlines "recognizes landing permission had been given"...Tokyo Governor Koike: "It's unfortunate that a disaster leads to another disaster"]. Yomiuri Shimbun (in Japanese). 2 January 2024. Archived from the original on 2 January 2024. Retrieved 4 January 2024.
^"事故調査支援へ専門家チーム＝日航機炎上で派遣―エアバス" [Airbus sent experts to support the investigation of the JAL aircraft combustion accident.]. Jiji Press (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 2 January 2024. Retrieved 2 January 2024.
^"羽田空港航空機衝突事故対策検討委員会 中間取りまとめ" [Interim report of the Haneda Airport Aircraft Crash Countermeasures Review Committee] (PDF) (in Japanese). 24 June 2024. Archived(PDF) from the original on 24 June 2024. Retrieved 28 June 2024.
^"羽田衝突事故時、負傷者乗せた救急車３０分出発できず…緊急車両を誘導するチーム新設など体制強化へ" [Ambulances carrying injured passengers were unable to leave for 30 minutes after Haneda crash...New team to guide emergency vehicles and other measures to strengthen system]. Yomiuri Shimbun (in Japanese). 28 June 2024. Archived from the original on 28 June 2024. Retrieved 28 June 2024.
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