by Bernie Goldbach in Clonmel
DURING MY 3000 FLYING HOURS I vividly remember two occasions when we were cleared to land on a runway that was occupied by another aircraft or by a vehicle. In both cases, I didn't see the conflict but a crew member sitting in the jump seat pointed out the problem.
Knowing this, I believe the JAL crew landing their Airbus on Flight 516 in Haneda yesterday didn't see anything on the runway as they prepared to land with clearance.
I saw some footage recorded inside the Airbus as it was careening down the runway. Flight attendants were yelling in Japanese, urging passengers to evacuate. An eerie orange glow burned outside the windows of the aircraft as the evacuation slides were activated.
The cabin crew proved their professionalism as they evacuated all 367 passengers and 12 crew members safely within 90 seconds. That was remarkable as was the fact that the collision did not sever hydraulic lines or critical electrical cables while the aircrew was trying to control the Airbus while landing.
The root cause of this accident has not been decreed but I've listened to the Air Traffic Control audio recordings and the JAL crew received two clearances to land during their five mile final approach. Two aircraft are not supposed to be on the same patch of concrete while an aircraft is landing.
As an instructor pilot in the T-38, I flew in the back seat with significantly reduced visibility. Landing on an unfamiliar civilian airport always concerned me because the T-38 has to maintain a nose-high attitude through approach and landing.
While piloting a C-141 on six different continents, I vividly remember two occasions when either vehicles were on the runway or when another aircraft had not cleared its landing roll-out. I failed to spot either incursion but crew members sitting in the jump seat alerted us to the conflicts.
Some airports have technology in place that causes the landing zone lights to turn red when sensors detect vehicles or aircraft on the runway. Perhaps the Haneda accident will spur Japanese aviation authorities to install that warning system in the largest airports in Japan.
[Bernie Goldbach is a certified flight instructor with experience in 19 different aircraft. The picture of the C-141 at the top of this post was taken by Robert Stemple.]
