TOKYO — All 379 passengers and crew of a Japan Airlines (JAL) plane miraculously escaped from a fire following a collision with a coast guard aircraft at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport on Tuesday, but local media said most of the coast guard plane crew had died. The coast guard said the collision involved one of its planes that was headed to Niigata airport on Japan’s west coast to deliver aid to those caught up in a powerful earthquake that struck on New Year’s Day, killing at least 48 people. ADVERTISEMENTFive of the six crew of the coast guard aircraft have died, public broadcaster NHK reported. A coast guard spokesperson earlier said five of the crew were unaccounted for but that the captain had escaped. Footage and images shared on social media showed passengers shouting inside the smoke-filled cabin and running across the tarmac away from an evacuation slide.

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer January 03, 2024 09:35 UTC