Japan begins twin probes into rare Tokyo runway collision

Japan's transport authorities began inspecting on Wednesday the charred remains of a passenger jet and a coast guard plane that collided at a Tokyo airport, while media said police were also investigating possible professional negligence in the case.

All 379 people aboard the Japan Airlines (JAL) Airbus A350 had a miraculous escape after it erupted in flames following Tuesday's crash with a De Havilland Dash-8 coast guard turboprop shortly after landing at Haneda airport.

But five died among the six coast guard crew responding to a major earthquake on the west coast, while the captain, who escaped the wreckage, was badly injured.

Such runway collisions, once a recurring safety problem, have become far less frequent, say aviation experts, thanks to modern ground tracking technology and procedures.

Japanese authorities say the cause of the crash is unclear.

The Japan Safety Transport Board (JTSB) is investigating the incident, with participation by agencies in France, where the Airbus airplane was built, and Britain, where its two Rolls-Royce engines were made, people familiar with the matter said.

The JTSB has recovered flight and voice recorders from the coast guard aircraft, Kyodo news agency said, citing the agency.

Tokyo police are investigating whether possible professional negligence led to deaths and injuries, several media, including Kyodo and the Nikkei business newspaper, said.

Police set up a special unit airport to investigate the runway and planned to interview those involved, a spokesperson said, but declined to say if they were examining the negligence concerns.

"There's a strong possibility there was a human error," said aviation analyst Hiroyuki Kobayashi, who is a former JAL pilot.

"Aircraft accidents very rarely occur due to a single problem, so I think that this time too there were two or three issues that led to the accident."

At a series of press conferences since the crash, officials and airline executives have been asked what information crew received from traffic control and why both planes ended up on the same runway.

In a statement on Wednesday, JAL said the aircraft recognized and repeated the landing permission from air traffic control before approaching and touching down.

All passengers and crew were evacuated within 20 minutes of the crash, but the aircraft, engulfed in flames, burned for more than six hours, the airline said.