A FedEx plane crashed on landing at Tokyo’s Narita airport early today, bursting into flames andkilling the two pilots on board.
The incident, at 06:49 local time, occurred upon landing, FedEx Express reported. The planesmashed into a runway and burst into a ball of fire while attempting to land at Tokyo’s maininternational airport. The aircraft was arriving from Guangzhou.
Firefighters and rescuers immediately swarmed the MD-11 plane but were unable to save the twopilots, Kevin Kyle Mosley (54) and Anthony Stephen Pino (49). Mosley lived in Oregon, while Pinowas from Texas, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. They were the only two peopleaboard, Associated Press reported.
FedEx Express said: “We are sad to report that there were no survivors. Our deepestsympathies go out to the family and friends of these crew members. This loss pains all of us atFedEx. Right now our focus is on doing everything we can to assist those involved at this difficulttime,” the company commented.
Investigators said the accident may have been caused by low-level turbulence or “wind shear,”sudden gusts that can lift or smash an aircraft into the ground during landing, according toKazuhito Tanakajima, an aviation safety official at the Japanese Transport Ministry.
Questions were also being raised about the safety of the Boeing MD-11, media reported. TomokiKuwano, a former Japan Airlines pilot and aviation expert, was cited as saying that although windshear could not be ruled out, the MD-11 has a tendency to be unstable during landing. “In the past,the MD-11 has a record of landing failure,” he said. “And when that happens, it often flips over.”
FedEx said it was investigating the cause of the accident. “We are thankful for the quickresponse of emergency teams on the ground and will continue to work closely with the applicableauthorities as we seek to determine the cause for this tragic incident.”
Japan Airlines and All Nippon Airways, the nation’s largest carriers, cancelled a total of 38flights today after the airport closed the longer of its two runways.
