Japanese Transport Minister Tetsuo Saito informed reporters that all 379 passengers and crew aboard the passenger plane, which caught fire, were successfully evacuated. However, tragically, five out of the six crew members from the smaller plane bound for central Japan after Monday's massive earthquake lost their lives, Saito confirmed. The surviving captain sustained injuries, though he managed to escape. Saito emphasized that it's premature to determine the cause of the accident.
Unverified videos circulated on social media and television depicting the Japan Airlines (JAL) airliner moving along the runway before an eruption of vivid orange flames and dark smoke emerged from underneath and behind the aircraft. Footage shared on the social media platform X displayed people sliding down inflatable emergency slides from the plane's side, amidst flames erupting from the rear.
The swift evacuation saw all 367 passengers and 12 crew members safely removed from the plane before numerous fire engines, adorned with flashing blue lights, doused the fuselage. Despite efforts, the flames persisted near the wings' windows, swiftly engulfing the entire aircraft. The Airbus 350 aircraft had landed from New Chitose Airport in Sapporo, Hokkaido's northern island, with eight children among the passengers.
A male passenger recounted the harrowing experience: "Smoke began filling the plane, and I thought, 'this could be really bad.'" He shared that an announcement indicated the inability to open doors in the back and middle, prompting everyone to disembark from the front. A female passenger described the intensifying fire after landing and her fear of not surviving due to the escalating heat inside the plane, as reported on NHK.
The coast guard plane was preparing to deliver supplies to Ishikawa prefecture after the devastating New Year's Day earthquake that claimed at least 48 lives. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida lauded the deceased crew members for their dedication to aiding the quake victims, acknowledging their high sense of duty and responsibility.
JAL suggested that the passenger plane either collided with the other aircraft on a runway or a taxiway post-landing, according to Kyodo. Haneda, one of the world's busiest airports, experienced burning debris on the runway, resulting in the suspension of domestic flights, as per the airport's website. However, most international takeoffs and landings continued operations.
A transport ministry official confirmed ongoing investigations into the incident, including communication exchanges between the flights and air traffic control. Japan has remarkably avoided serious commercial aviation accidents for decades, with its worst disaster dating back to 1985 when a JAL jumbo jet crashed in central Gunma region, claiming the lives of 520 passengers and crew—marking one of the deadliest single-flight plane crashes worldwide.