A China Airlines Boeing 737-800 airliner burst into flames yesterday moments after landing on the Japanese island of Okinawa after all 165 passengers and crew made a dramatic escape.
Flames and giant plumes of black smoke erupted from the jet just after it landed at Naha Airport after a flight from Taipei.
"When we looked out the window, everything was covered with fire," an unidentified male passenger told reporters.
PHOTO: AP
"I saw several passengers evacuate the plane using a chute. After a minute or so, I heard the sound of an explosion. It was a big explosion," said Tadahiro Hasuo, who told Japanese TV network NHK he felt the heat of the blast while passing Naha airport in a taxi.
Video shot by an eyewitness and broadcast on TV showed passengers sliding down two chutes on the right side of the plane, while flames and thick black smoke billowed from the left.
Early investigations in Okinawa raised the possibility that leaking fuel may have caused the blaze.
PHOTO: AP
"We don't have any information that suggests the accident was linked to terrorism. There is a possibility of the engine catching fire and exploding due to a fuel leak," a Naha airport police official said.
One member of the ground crew had been injured, Kyodo news agency reported.
The flight landed using standard procedures and taxied to the designated gate, China Airlines spokesman Johnson Sun (孫鴻文) said at a news conference. The captain was later informed by the ground crew that one of the plane's engines was on fire and all 157 passengers and eight crew members were immediately evacuated by the emergency chutes, Sun said.
PHOTO: EPA
"We are very sorry and regret the accident," he said.
Following the explosion, the Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) and Aviation Safety Council (ASC) held press conferences in Taipei to assuage public fears.
CAA Director-General Billy Chang (張國政) said that based on Taiwan's Aviation Occurrence Investigation Act (飛航事故調查法), the authority to investigate the accident lay in Japan's Aircrafts and Railway Accidents Investigation Commission (ARAIC).
Nonetheless, the administration has formed a special task force and immediately dispatched three CAA officials to Japan to assist officials from the ARAIC in the investigation.
Chang said that the nation had 15 Boeing 737-800 model planes, 12 of which are owned by China Airlines, including the plane that burned in Okinawa. Two belong to Mandarin Airlines and one, Air Force One, is owned by the Air Force. He said that these planes had been grounded by the CAA for further inspection.
Chang said the plane that had caught fire was only five years old and had just completed its routine maintenance on July 13. He said that a preliminary investigation showed the flight's captain was informed by ground staff about the fire after the plane landed at the airport.
Meanwhile, four ASC representatives arrived at Okinawa yesterday evening to start working with ARAIC and China Airline representatives to identify the cause of the explosion.
China Airlines, Taiwan's largest carrier, purchased the B737-800 passenger jet in July 2002. The company uses the B737-800s in its fleet to fly mainly short-haul Asian routes.
James Fang (方粵強), the director of the ASC's investigation department, told the Taipei Times that this type of incident had never occurred in the past.
Most of the Taiwanese passengers on the plane had been on package tours arranged by four travel agencies in Taiwan -- South East Travel Service (東南旅行社), Gloria Tours (喜美旅行社), Daiei Travel Service (大榮旅行社) and Mic Travel Co (萬達旅行社). Their luggage was destroyed in the fire.
China Airlines said it would compensate passengers NT$1,000 per kilogram of luggage, with a maximum compensation of NT$20,000 in accordance with civil aviation regulations. Compensation for the passengers' mental suffering had not been decided.
China Airlines has a patchy safety record and this is the carrier's fourth accident in 13 years.
After devoting huge resources to improving safety and regaining public confidence, the company was starting to see some positive results.
Despite high aviation fuel costs, the company posted a net income of NT$738.35 million (US$22.5 million), or NT$0.20 per share, last year. Company chairman Philip Wei (魏幸雄) said its operating costs were lower because of a lower insurance premium, which was 45 percent less than what the carrier used to pay, because of its better flight safety record.
But the carrier is once again under fire over the accident in Okinawa. The airlines' already ailing finances will be also affected by the loss. For the first quarter of the year, the carrier reported a loss of NT$805.83 billion, or negative NT$0.21 per share.
Following the accident, China Airlines president Ringo Chao (趙國帥) led a team to Okinawa.
During a press briefing last night, Chao said he regretted the accident and appreciated the aid offered by Japanese authorities.
Chao also said the company was uncertain of the cause of the explosion and would rely on the findings of investigators.
The last accident involving China Airlines was on May 25, 2002, when a Boeing 747-200 broke up and crashed into the sea near the Penghu Islands 20 minutes after takeoff from Taipei on a flight to Hong Kong. The crash caused the death of all 206 passengers and 19 crew members.
Meanwhile, the Air Force yesterday said that it would carry out stricter maintenance on Air Force One, which is also a 737-800.
"Because of a request from the Civil Aeronautics Administration, we will carry out a special detailed check on the aircraft as soon as possible," said Lieutenant General Jason Liu (
Additional reporting by Jimmy Chuang
SECURITY: As China is ‘reshaping’ Hong Kong’s population, Taiwan must raise the eligibility threshold for applications from Hong Kongers, Chiu Chui-cheng said When Hong Kong and Macau citizens apply for residency in Taiwan, it would be under a new category that includes a “national security observation period,” Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. President William Lai (賴清德) on March 13 announced 17 strategies to counter China’s aggression toward Taiwan, including incorporating national security considerations into the review process for residency applications from Hong Kong and Macau citizens. The situation in Hong Kong is constantly changing, Chiu said to media yesterday on the sidelines of the Taipei Technology Run hosted by the Taipei Neihu Technology Park Development Association. With
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College
TRADE: A mandatory declaration of origin for manufactured goods bound for the US is to take effect on May 7 to block China from exploiting Taiwan’s trade channels All products manufactured in Taiwan and exported to the US must include a signed declaration of origin starting on May 7, the Bureau of Foreign Trade announced yesterday. US President Donald Trump on April 2 imposed a 32 percent tariff on imports from Taiwan, but one week later announced a 90-day pause on its implementation. However, a universal 10 percent tariff was immediately applied to most imports from around the world. On April 12, the Trump administration further exempted computers, smartphones and semiconductors from the new tariffs. In response, President William Lai’s (賴清德) administration has introduced a series of countermeasures to support affected
RSS