The captain of a plane that collided with a Japan Airlines jet said he was cleared for takeoff, but traffic control transcripts tell a different story
Kyodo/via REUTERS
- We now have a better sense of what may have caused the Japan Airlines crash in Tokyo.
- A Japanese Coast Guard aircraft that the passenger jet hit while landing wasn't cleared to take off.
- Transcripts from just before the crash appear to contradict the Coast Guard pilot's claim.
A Coast Guard aircraft that collided with a Japan Airlines passenger jet this week wasn't cleared for takeoff, according to a traffic control transcript detailing the moments before the crash.
The Coast Guard plane was instructed to taxi to a point near the runway on Tuesday evening at Tokyo's Hanata Airport, Bloomberg reported, citing the transcript.
But the captain of the plane said after the accident that he had "obtained permission to take off," Japanese media reports said.
Someone on the Coast Guard plane acknowledged the directive to taxi, Bloomberg reported.
"Taxi to holding point C5 JA722A No. 1, Thank you," the flight crew said, according to Bloomberg. It's unclear whether the person speaking was the captain or his copilot.
Five of the six crewmembers of the Coast Guard plane died; the captain was the only survivor and was badly injured after the crash, Japanese officials said, according to Reuters.
The Japan Airlines passenger jet that collided with the Coast Guard plane had permission to land, the transcripts show.
All 379 passengers on board escaped before the aircraft burst into flames after landing — even though the intercom system was broken and more than half the emergency exits were unusable.
Experts said that the passengers and crew survived because they listened to the flight crew and left their luggage behind.
Japan's Safety Transport Board is working with British and French government agencies to investigate the accident, Reuters reported.
The Airbus was built in the UK and its Rolls-Royce engines were built in France, according to Reuters.
"The transport ministry is submitting objective material and will fully cooperate with the … investigation to ensure we work together to take all possible safety measures to prevent a recurrence," Japanese Transport Minister Tetsuo Saito told reporters after the crash.