Five dead after passenger plane explodes into flames at Toyko airport

Five people are dead after a Japan Airlines passenger plane collided with another aircraft and exploded on the runway at a Tokyo airport.

Officials have revealed what caused the deadly explosion of a Japanese passenger plane on the runway of a Tokyo airport.

Shocking footage released by the country’s public broadcaster NHK on Tuesday showed flames erupting out of the windows of a Japan Airlines A350 passenger plane, with the runway at Haneda International Airport also set alight.

The aircraft, which took off from the northern Japanese city of Sapporo, collided with a Coast Guard plane, though it took hours to confirm exactly how the collision occurred.

A Japan Airlines plane has burst into flames at Tokyo's Haneda Airport. Picture: JIJI PRESS / AFP / Japan OUT

Five of the six crew members on the Coast Guard plane were killed in the collision, according to Japan’s transport minister.

It’s understood the remaining crew member, the pilot, escaped the inferno but was injured in the blaze. The nature of their injuries is unclear.

All 379 passengers and 12 crew on board the Japan Airlines flight escaped without life-threatening injuries, the airline confirmed — a feat described as a “miracle” by a former commercial pilot.

The passengers included eight children, Japan Airlines said.

The Japan Airlines flight collided with a coast guard plane, according to local media reports. Picture: BBC

The incident happened when the Japan Airlines flight landed on one of the airport’s four runways where the coastguard aircraft was preparing to take off, Japan’s Transport Ministry Civil Aviation Bureau confirmed late on Tuesday.

The coastguard pilot reported to his base that his aircraft exploded after colliding with the commercial plane, Vice Commander Yoshio Seguchi said.

Transport safety officials are now analysing communication between aviation control officials and the two aircraft.

They plan to interview Japan Airlines officials to determine exactly what led to the collision.

A Japan Airlines jet is on fire at Tokyo Haneda Airport. 🇯🇵 🚨 ✈️ 🔥 pic.twitter.com/FaUAd7sERb

— Cole Cameron (@colecameron) January 2, 2024

It’s understood the Coast Guard plane — a Bombardier Dash-8 — was preparing to fly to areas impacted by the recent Japanese earthquake, which caused tsunami warnings and widespread destruction to residential areas.

Japan’s prime minister, Fumio Kishida, offered his “heartfelt condolences” after the crash.

“It is a very disappointing and saddening situation,” he told a news conference.

He said he would like “to express my heartfelt gratitude for the efforts” to evacuate the passenger plane.

A Japan Airlines plane has burst into flames while it landed in Toyko. Picture: NHK

Dramatic footage from inside the plane has been shared on social media, showing passengers covering their mouths to protect themselves from the billowing smoke.

The distress and panic is evident as people are heard screaming from inside the aircraft.

Another video filmed from a window seat shows fire and smoke erupting on the side of the plane as it lands on the runway.

Swede Anton Deibe, 17, who was on board the Japan Airlines flight with his parents and sister when it crashed, said the experience was “hell”.

“The entire cabin was filled with smoke within a few minutes,” he told Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet.

“We threw ourselves down on the floor. Then the emergency doors were opened and we threw ourselves at them.

“The smoke in the cabin stung like hell. It was a hell. We have no idea where we are going so we just ran out into the field. It was chaos.”

Japan Airlines flight JL516, an Airbus A350-941, collided with a Coast Guard plane at Haneda Airport:pic.twitter.com/60DlACUDJc

— Aviation Safety Network (ASN) (@AviationSafety) January 2, 2024

But former commercial pilot Roger Whitefield described the passengers’ escape as a “miracle”.

“We have just witnessed a miracle,” Mr Whitefield told Sky News.

“The way they got all those passengers off that aeroplane is almost beyond belief.”

Images show smoke pouring out of one of the rear doors, meaning the visibility on the plane “must have been nil”.

“For the crew to get all the passengers out, it’s a miracle. There’s no two ways about it,” he added.

The plane took off from Sapparo earlier this evening. Picture: Twitter

All runways at Haneda Airport were closed after the explosion, with 110 domestic flights cancelled.

Three of the runways reopened late on Tuesday evening, a spokesperson confirmed.

🔴#BREAKING_NEWS🔴 Footage from the Inside of Japan Airlines, Flight JL516 directly following the Collision with a Japanese Coast Guard Aircraft at Tokyo-Haneda International Airport.#Japanairlinespic.twitter.com/n7DFBRVJ2j

— conflict zone (@kulio_zone) January 2, 2024

According to Flight Radar 24, which tracks flights across the world, the Coast Guard plane was not equipped with a key safety feature.

The flight tracker said the incident occurred at 5.47pm local time as the Japan Airlines flight was landing.

The Coast Guard aircraft was a De Havilland Canada DHC-8-315Q MPA, also known as a Bombardier Dash-8, with registration JA772A.

It was not equipped with a modern ADS-B transponder, Flight Radar said.

ADS-B transponders are used to transmit highly accurate information about an aircraft’s position to ground controllers and directly to other aircraft.

The system is more accurate than using conventional radar surveillance.

All passengers and crew were evacuated safely, according to local media reports. Picture: JIJI PRESS / AFP / Japan OUT

Haneda Airport is one of the busiest airports in Japan, and many people travel over the New Year holidays.

In 2020, it was named the second-best airport after Singapore’s Changi Airport, while Skytrax named it as the as the second best airport in the world in 2021, in-between Qatar’s Hamad International Airport and Changi.

Japan has not suffered a serious commercial aviation accident in decades.

The event comes just one day after the country was devastated by a 7.5 magnitude earthquake that left at least 48 dead on New Year’s Day.

Originally published as Five dead after passenger plane explodes into flames at Toyko airport