No Filipinos aboard JAL plane in Tokyo airport mishap, says Japan Embassy
By Raymund Antonio and Raymund Antonio
There were no Filipino onboard the Japan Airlines (JAL) flight that caught fire at the Haneda Airport in Tokyo after a collision with a second aircraft, the Japanese Embassy in Manila said on Thursday, Jan. 4.
An official looks at the wreckage of a Japan coast guard plane on the tarmac at Tokyo International Airport at Haneda in Tokyo on Jan. 3, 2024, the morning after a Japan Airlines (JAL) airliner hit the smaller coast guard plane on the ground. (AFP)
“According to our current information received from JAL, there are no passengers of Philippine nationality on the flight,” the embassy told Manila Bulletin.
This information came after Philippine Ambassador to Japan Mylene Garcia-Albano said on Wednesday, Jan. 3, that she has received no information yet from JAL and the Haneda Airport police if there were Filipinos in the flight, citing privacy reasons.
The envoy, however, assured that it remained persistent in efforts to obtain such information and had reached out again to JAL.
She also said the embassy is ready to assist should there be any Filipinos who lost their travel documents in the blast.
JAL flight 516 collided with a second aircraft, operated by the Japan Coast Guard, on Tuesday night, and subsequently burst into flames.
While all passengers were safely evacuated from the plane, five people were killed in the second aircraft reportedly carrying earthquake relief supplies.
According to a statement from JAL, its aircraft was cleared to land by air traffic control but collided with the Japan Coast Guard aircraft after landing.
After the plane caught fire, passengers used the emergency slides to flee from the blaze. More than 100 firetrucks were reportedly dispatched to respond to the accident.