JL516 Crash

On 2nd January 2024, Japan Airlines flight 516 landed at Tokyo Haneda Airport (HND). It then immediately collided with a Japan Airlines Coast Guard DHC-8 causing a fire to break out with the aircraft being nearly completely destroyed in the fire and 5 people killed. It happened a day after Japan experienced an earthquake on the 1st of January. In this post, I will look at what happened and what could possibly have caused or contributed to this accident.

What happened?

On 2nd January 2024, Japan Airlines flight 516 was operating from Sapporo (CTS) to Haneda (HND). The flight was operated by an A350-900. The aircraft was registered JAX13XJ. It was 2 years old, being registered in September 2021. The flight departed CTS at 16:27 local time. Landing clearance was given to the jet at 08:44:30 UTC and at 08:47:32 UTC, the aircraft was reported as travelling at a speed of 120 knots ground speed at runway 34R. The aircraft landed at HND at 17:47 local time. Immediately after touching down the Japan Airlines A350 collided with a Japan Coast Guard De Havilland Canada DHC-8-315Q. The DHC-8 had registration: JA722A. A fire broke out and the Japan Airlines A350 continued down the runway before coming to a stop. The front nose gear of the aircraft had collapsed. The JAL A350 was evacuated with all 379 passengers and crew escaping safely. However, 5 crew members of the Coastguard DHC-8 were killed and 1 was seriously injured. As a result of the fire the JAL A350 was largely destroyed. This is the first hull loss of an A350.

Aftermath and Investigation

Following the incident, Haneda Airport suspended operations as all fire crews were involved with the crash. Flights already in the air, whose destination was Haneda had to divert with many diverting to Tokyo Narita Airport (NRT) The airport resumed operations late on the evening of 2nd January.

An investigation will be carried out to determine the cause of the accident. The Japan Civil Aviation Bureau will be investigating and Airbus has stated that it will send a team of experts to assist. The French BEA will also be investigating as France is the country of manufacture. The Coastguard aircraft was on the runway without clearance when the A350 landed. ATC recordings show that the Japanese coastguard aircraft was instructed to taxi to the C5 intersection hold short point while JL516 was cleared to land. However, the stopbar lights for taxiway entry were out of service at the time of the incident meaning the pilots of the DHC-8 may not have been aware that they had entered the active runway.

The A350 aircraft is made with composite materials with 53% of the fuselage being composed of composite materials meaning it burns differently to how traditional aluminium planes burn. The carbon composite structure of the plane allowed the plane to better hold its shape, allowing passengers and crew to safely evacuate. Aluminium begins to degrade between 300 and 400 degrees Celcius and can begin to melt beyond 600 degrees Celcius. However, Carbon fibre-reinforced polymer (CFRP) can withstand higher temperatures, in range of 2000 degrees Celcius and even after burning has started, carbon composites maintain their structural integrity. This incident will provide valuable insight into how carbon composite materials burn which will hopefully be used to keep passengers and crew safe when incidents such as a fire do occur.

January has been an exciting month for aviation. The safe evacuation of all passengers and crew from the A350 shows the rigorous safety standards within the aviation industry. Hopefully, this incident will be used to make the already safe aviation industry safer for all those who fly.