Five Japanese coast guard members died Tuesday after the plane they were traveling in collided with a Japan Airlines Airbus A350 with 379 people on board as it landed at Haneda Airport in Tokyo, Japan.
The accident resulted in a massive fire that destroyed the Japan Airlines plane. All 379 people on board the Airbus were safely removed from the aircraft.
The Airbus took off from the new Chitose Airport in Hokkaido, Japan.
According to the newspaper Japan TimesFive of six coast guard personnel en route to the Niigata airport base to deliver aid to the earthquake-stricken Noto region went missing and were later found dead. The plane’s commander, the only survivor, was seriously injured.
All runways at Haneda Airport are currently closed.
The Ministry of Territory, Infrastructure and Transport announced the launch of an investigation to establish the causes of the accident.