The Coast Guard plane that crashed into a Tokyo airport did not have permission to be on the runway

MADRID, 3 Ene. (EUROPA PRESS) -

The Japanese Coast Guard aircraft that was hit on Tuesday by a Japan Airlines Boeing at Tokyo's Haneda airport did not have permission to take off and should not have been on the runway, according to the first conclusions drawn from communications and that seem to contradict the initial version of the surviving pilot.

Five of the six crew members of this aircraft died from the impact of the passenger plane, in which about 380 people were traveling, and authorities are now trying to determine the reasons that led to one of the most serious airport tragedies in Japan's recent history. The Transportation Safety Board has begun examining the wreckage of the small plane, while the Police are also collecting clues at the scene.

Japan Airlines maintains that its plane, from Sapporo, proceeded with the landing after confirming the procedure with the control tower and without being aware of any mishap on the runway, where in reality there was a second smaller aircraft that had been there. been mobilized for relief efforts after the powerful earthquake that shook the country on New Year's, reports the Kiodo news agency.

The conversations recovered after the accident also show an order from the control tower for the plane to wait at a waiting point, off the runway. The crew responds affirmatively to this order, although it is not clear whether the voice appearing in the recording is that of the only survivor or that of his co-pilot, who died as a result of the accident.

The authorities do not rule out that there may be other interactions or even that the crew could have misinterpreted the instructions, which nevertheless seem clear. The accident took place at 5:47 p.m. (local time) on Tuesday and forced the temporary closure of all airport runways, where emergency services initially acted to evacuate all passengers from the Japan Airlines Boeing.