In a chilling twist to the Haneda Airport tragedy, Japanese authorities revealed that the passenger jet involved in the collision with a coastguard turboprop was cleared to land, while the smaller plane was not. This discrepancy, based on control tower transcripts, raises serious questions about the cause of the crash and potential lapses in safety procedures.
All 379 people aboard the Japan Airlines Airbus A350 miraculously escaped the fiery inferno that erupted after the Tuesday collision. However, five of the six coastguard crew members perished, with the captain critically injured. The coastguard plane, scheduled to deliver aid to earthquake-stricken areas, was preparing for takeoff when the incident occurred.
The released control tower transcripts paint a confusing picture. While the JAL jet received landing permission, the coastguard plane was instructed to hold at a designated point near the runway. No mention of takeoff clearance for the smaller aircraft appears in the transcripts, further fueling speculation about miscommunication or humans.
Multiple agencies are investigating the crash, including Japan’s Civil Aviation Bureau, the Japan Safety Transport Board, and the police. The focus is on determining how both planes ended up on the same runway and identifying any safety lapses that contributed to the tragedy. The voice recorder from the coastguard plane has been recovered, offering potential clues to the events leading up to the crash.
Tokyo police are investigating potential professional negligence in connection with the deaths and injuries. This parallel inquiry raises concerns about potential tension between the civil safety investigation and the police-led one, with the former seeking to improve safety through open discussion of errors, and the latter focused on assigning blame.
The accident has shaken Japan, a country with a strong track record in commercial aviation safety. Experts believe multiple factors likely contributed to the collision, highlighting the need for a thorough investigation and robust safety measures to prevent similar tragedies.
The discrepancy between the control tower instructions for the two planes remains the central mystery. Was there a miscommunication? Did the coastguard pilot disregard instructions? The investigations will hopefully shed light on these crucial questions and ensure such a tragedy never occurs again.
