TOKYO, Jan 3 — One day after the collision between a Japanese passenger plane and a coastguard aircraft at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport, the country’s transportation authorities have begun investigating the cause of the accident, reported German news agency (dpa).
The Japan Transport Safety Board, a government agency responsible for serious accidents involving aircraft, trains and ships, is taking a close look at the burnt-out wreckage, the Japanese news agency Kyodo reported on Wednesday.
A Japan Airlines (JAL) passenger plane had collided with the coastguard plane after landing on Tuesday. Both caught fire.
All 379 people on board the JAL Airbus A350 plane were able to escape the blazing aircraft without life-threatening injuries, but five people died on board the coastguard aircraft. Only the pilot of the Bombardier DHC8-300 was able to escape, suffering serious injuries, according to local media.
The inferno on the JAL aircraft was brought under control more than eight hours after the collision.
“We would like to assure you that we will provide our full cooperation in the investigation of this unfortunate event,” read a JAL statement.
A statement from Airbus expressed its sympathy for all those affected by the incident.
The A350-900 was only two years old, according to Airbus. The company will provide technical support to the responsible authorities investigating the incident.
All runways at Japan’s busiest airport were temporarily closed on the day of the incident, but were reopened, except for runway 34R, the site of the incident. JAL cancelled more than 40 flights to and from Haneda on Wednesday. Fellow Japanese airline All Nippon Airways also cancelled dozens of flights.
