A350 Catches Fire in Japan

The remains of the JAL A350 that caught fire (AP).

(This post is dedicated to the five people who died in the crash on January 2nd as well as cabin crew all over the world who keep us safe while flying. With the time that they take out of their lives, the skies have never been safer.)

The year 2024 couldn’t have started with a bigger bang than with what happened on January 2nd. A Japan Airlines A350-900 and a Japanese Coast Guard Dash 8 aircraft collided on the ground at Tokyo Haneda. While all 379 people on the A350 evacuated safely, unfortunately 5 out of the 6 people on board the Dash 8 died. So, my thoughts go out to everyone involved as well as for Japan because they also had an earthquake recently. But out of the utter shock of this incident, what can we learn from this? In this post, I will talk about how important cabin crew are to keeping you safe as well as what consequences can come from this.

The Importance of Cabin Crew

A Virgin Atlantic Airbus A350-1000 at LHR (Jamsheed Motafram).

If there’s one big takeaway to take out of this, it would be how the JAL cabin crew handled this incident. Every year, cabin crew for any airline need to undergo intense training for three weeks that includes written exams, case studies and simulated drills for emergencies such as water landings like on the Hudson River or whenever there is an airplane fire like the Tokyo incident. But what’s incredible is that the plane’s PA system malfunctioned, and the cabin crew still found a way to communicate with passengers by shouting and communicating via a megaphone. All this while the plane was at an angle on the ground making it harder for passengers to evacuate on the slide. It also helps that most aircraft these days are designed to make it easier for cabin crew to guide passengers to the exit. In addition, the passengers did a great job in making sure to follow the instructions of leaving their personal belongings on the plane.

An Emirates 777-300ER similar to the one that crashed in 2016 taking off from Seattle (Jamsheed Motafram).

Analysts compared this to a hull loss of an Emirates 777 in 2016 although in that flight, all passengers survived despite grabbing their possessions on the way out. Again, much praise to the cabin crew on that flight as well making sure everyone got out safely. Lastly, we can’t forget the Miracle at the Hudson River where not only was Captain Sullenberger (Sully) praised for his water landing, but the cabin crew there also did a masterful job making sure all passengers evacuated safely. So, if you are flying, please remember to study the safety card in your seat pocket and pay attention to the safety briefings. The nearest exit may be behind you!

Japan Airlines A350 Accident Fallout

An Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 MAX on a test flight at Boeing Field next to The Museum of Flight. Just like the 737 MAX, it will be natural for passengers to feel resentment to the A350 thanks to this incident (Jamsheed Motafram).

As per usual with these incidents, there will be investigations to ascertain what went wrong in the accident. First off, since this was the first hull loss for an aircraft made of composites (A350 and 787 both have composite fuselages), the elephant in the room was to see if the material was able to endure the 90 seconds required for passengers and crew to evacuate. Thankfully this was the case here. During the investigations, Airbus stated that the composite airframe had a similar level of fire resistance as aluminum. In addition to looking at how the A350 handled the accident, authorities will work with the airport to see what led to the incident. So, transcripts of communication between the planes involved and Air Traffic Control will be investigated to make sure there was proper communication. This will be a long process that could take months or even years and we will not know what changes will happen until then.

Conclusion

A Japan Airlines Boeing 777-300ER at New York JFK (Jamsheed Motafram).

In summary, this accident was a tragedy yet a remarkable success story thanks to the cabin crew of Japan Airlines. While 5 people have tragically perished, this could have been a lot worse and I’m grateful that more lives were not lost. So, my message to all of you is this, review the safety card once you enter your seat, pay attention to the safety briefings, and most importantly, PLEASE thank a flight attendant after your flight is complete. They aren’t there just to serve you food and drinks. Flight attendants are in the planes to make sure that you are safe and sacrifice a lot to make sure that’s the case. Stay safe everyone and keep looking to the sky!