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Transport Safety Board Issues Second Interim Report on Haneda Collision

Investigators will deepen analysis of clearance misperception with a focus on runway visibility.

Overview

  • The board released its second interim report on December 25, an unprecedented step it attributed to the case’s significant public impact.
  • Japan Airlines disclosed its crew did not recognize the Coast Guard aircraft until moments before impact, prompting a large-scale visibility verification at Chubu Airport.
  • A March reconstruction at night used a same-type Coast Guard aircraft on the runway while a ministry inspection plane and a JAXA helicopter conducted repeated go-arounds to document what approaching crews could see.
  • Investigators will further examine whether the Coast Guard captain and first officer mistakenly believed they had runway-entry clearance, along with cockpit communications and tower staffing.
  • Five Coast Guard personnel died in the January collision, and the timing for the final report remains undecided after planned expert hearings.