Flight attendants needed permission from cockpit to open emergency exits, broadcaster reports
Pilots on a Japan Airlines plane that became engulfed in flames just after all 379 passengers and crew escaped were initially unaware the aircraft was on fire, according to fresh details reported in local media.
The airliner collided with a coast guard plane after landing at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport on Tuesday evening. All but one of the six people on the smaller aircraft were killed.
A ball of flames erupted from the airliner before it came to a halt, with the fire beginning to spread from underneath the aircraft, footage shot by passengers showed.
But according to national broadcaster NHK, the Japan Airlines pilots in the cockpit did not know about the fire before being informed by the cabin crew.
The chief flight attendant reported to the cockpit that the plane was burning, as the cabin crew needed permission to open the emergency exits, NHK reported.
By this time, the cabin was filling with smoke and getting hotter, with babies crying and people begging for the doors to be opened, footage showed.
