A Japan Airlines plane burst into flames after colliding with a Japan Coast Guard aircraft while landing at Haneda Airport in Tokyo on Tuesday evening.
Five of the six crew members of the fixed-wing Coast Guard plane have been confirmed dead, the public broadcaster, NHK, reported. Japan Airlines said that all 367 passengers and 12 crew members on its plane were safely evacuated, according to NHK.
The Coast Guard plane, an MA722, was on a mission to transport supplies to a base in Niigata Prefecture to help areas affected by the powerful earthquake that struck western Japan on Monday, according to Naoko Kobayashi of the Japan Coast Guard.
Footage aired by NHK showed the Japan Airlines plane on fire as it streaked across a runway. The broadcaster reported that the plane, Flight 516, had departed New Chitose Airport in the northern prefecture of Hokkaido and was scheduled to land at Haneda at 5:40 p.m.
Live footage after 6 p.m. showed firefighters trying to douse flames pouring out of the plane.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
