Japan Air Lines Flight 123

Japan Air Lines Flight 123 was a scheduled passenger flight from Tokyo to Osaka, Japan. On the evening of August 12, 1985, the Boeing 747 flying this route suffered a severe structural failure and lost pressure in the cabin shortly after takeoff.

The plane continued to fly for about 32 minutes with very little control before crashing in the area of Mount Takamagahara, about 100 kilometres from Tokyo. Sadly, most of the 524 people on board did not survive the crash.

The accident was caused by a mistake made during a repair seven years earlier. This repair failed during the flight, tearing off part of the plane's tail and making it impossible to control. This crash remains the deadliest single-aircraft accident in aviation history and the worst aviation disaster in Japan.

Aircraft

The Boeing 747SR-46 with registration JA8119 was a plane built in 1974 and used by Japan Air Lines. It had flown for over 25,000 hours before the tragic event.

In 1978, the same plane had a hard landing that caused damage to its tail. The damage was fixed, and the plane continued to fly until the later accident.

Crew

The flight had 15 crew members, including 3 in the cockpit and 12 in the cabin. The cockpit crew included Captain Masami Takahama, who was also serving as a training instructor, First Officer Yutaka Sasaki, who was training to become a captain, and Flight Engineer Hiroshi Fukuda. All three were experienced pilots with many hours of flying time.

Passengers

The flight took place during the Obon holiday, a time when many Japanese people travel to visit family or go on vacations. There were twenty-two people from other countries on board, including four from Hong Kong, two from Italy, six from the United States, and one each from West Germany and the United Kingdom. Some of these people also had Japanese citizenship and lived in Japan.

Only four people survived the crash, and they were all Japanese women sitting in the middle part of the plane. Among those who sadly did not survive were famous Japanese singer and actor Kyu Sakamoto and banker Akihisa Yukawa. Several other well-known people had planned to be on the flight but chose different travel ways instead.

Delayed rescue operation

A United States Air Force navigator later shared that the U.S. military had heard the plane's distress calls and got ready to help, but the Japanese authorities stopped their rescue plans. A U.S. Air Force C-130 crew saw the crash site soon after it happened and told others where it was. Later that night, a JSDF helicopter also found the plane, but it was too hard to land because of the dark and rough terrain. The pilot reported that no one seemed to be alive. Because of this, rescue teams did not go to the site that night. Instead, they prepared for the next morning by setting up a base nearby.

The next day, rescue teams went to the crash site. Some people had survived the crash but unfortunately did not survive the night because of the cold and injuries. One survivor, an off-duty flight worker named Yumi Ochiai, later remembered hearing helicopters and other survivors in the night, but these sounds slowly stopped.

Investigation

Japan's Aircraft Accident Investigation Commission published its final report on the crash on June 19, 1987. The report found that seven years before the crash, the plane had hit its tail on the ground during a takeoff attempt as JAL Flight 115, damaging a key part of the plane called the aft pressure bulkhead. The repair done on this part was not done correctly, following Boeing's instructions. This mistake made the part weaker and likely to break after many flights.

Over time, the weakened part began to crack and eventually failed during Flight 123. This caused a sudden loss of air pressure, breaking important systems and making it very hard to control the plane. The plane could not be steered properly and eventually crashed.

Aftermath and legacy

After the disaster, public confidence in Japan Air Lines dropped significantly, with many passengers choosing other airlines like All Nippon Airways. In response, the airline made changes to improve safety and training.

The crash also influenced safety practices worldwide. For example, the experience from this accident helped a pilot during another incident in 1989, leading to many lives being saved. Today, a safety center at Haneda Airport reminds everyone about the importance of airline safety. Families and volunteers still hold a memorial each year to honor those affected.

Memorials

There are several memorials dedicated to those who were affected by the Japan Air Lines Flight 123 accident. One monument stands in Fujioka, and another is a cenotaph located at Osutaka Ridge. A third memorial can be found in Ueno, Gunma. These sites remember the people involved in the event.

In popular culture

The crash of Japan Air Lines Flight 123 has been shown in several TV shows and documentaries. It appeared in episodes of Mayday, Why Planes Crash, Aircrash Confidential, and Seconds from Disaster. A novel named Seventeen by Hideo Yokoyama and a film called Climber's High are based on the crash. In 2009, a movie called Shizumanu Taiyō told a fictional story about events related to the crash. The story inspired a children's book, My Papa's Persimmon Tree, published in 2016.