How safety regulations "written in blood" prevented the Tokyo aircraft tragedy and saved lives
It appears amazing that anyone survived the Japan Airlines crash at Tokyo’s Haneda airport after seeing the video.
Nevertheless, all 379 passengers and crew members on board the Airbus A350 have survived the disaster, despite the heartbreaking loss of five of the six crew members on the Japan Coast Guard Dash 8 jet that it impacted during Tuesday’s landing.
Experts claim that a mix of contemporary safety regulations and Japan Airlines’ strict safety culture is responsible for the smooth evacuation, even if investigations into the events leading up to the incident—which saw the JAL jet explode in a fireball—are still underway.
According to the video, “I was surprised and relieved that everyone got out,” says Graham Braithwaite, a safety and accident investigation professor at Cranfield University in the United Kingdom.
It’s an extremely harsh blow that any aircraft must endure. However, given what I know about that airline and the amount of work they put into crew training and safety, it shouldn’t come as a huge surprise that they performed so well.
He claims that Japan Airlines became so safe because of a disastrous accident that occurred over 40 years ago.
Out of the 524 people on board, 520 perished in the August 12, 1985 accident of JAL flight 123 from Tokyo to Osaka due to a defective tail repair made by Boeing experts, not the airline.
It remains the deadliest single-aircraft disaster in the history of aviation.
According to Braithwaite, “the effect was profound on the airline.” In a society such as Japan’s, they accepted that duty collectively and vowed to ensure that such an incident would never occur again.
As a result, they view failures as opportunities for growth. Everything offers a chance to get better.
Seeing that many new hires were joining the firm with little recollection of the tragedy that occurred 20 years prior, JAL erected a section of their corporate headquarters in 2005 to showcase pieces of the debris along with the crew and passenger’s testimonies.
It seemed to us that some of the new hires were unaware of what it was like to make a mistake. Everyone must recognise the amount of work involved in maintaining safety, according to Braithwaite.
He claims that even after over 40 years, the disaster continues to have a significant impact on the company’s mindset.
They have a highly rigorous culture that emphasises following SOPs and carrying out tasks correctly. That’s one of the reasons the staff seems to have done so well in this instance, he says.
Although the cause of Tuesday’s tragedy is yet unknown, Braithwaite claims that Japan Airlines would benefit “absolutely” from the successful evacuation.
He replies, “I think this is the reason why you should fly with them if you want to see one.”
The website Airlineratings.com consistently lists JAL as one of the safest airlines in the world in its yearly listing.
According to chief editor Geoffrey Thomas, Japan Airlines has had a stellar safety record going back to 1985. Nevertheless, the airline was not responsible for the disaster; rather, Boeing’s poor repair work was the cause.
It has received the highest rating of seven stars from our website and has cleared every significant safety check. Additionally, Japan’s aviation safety agency outperforms the global average in terms of compliance with the eight supervision requirements.
According to Braithwaite, runway intrusions are “rare but can be catastrophic.”
Airports become “complex real estate that we have to work hard to protect” as a result of several airlines and ground companies moving cars around.
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Naturally, it’s too early to tell what transpired in Tokyo or how two planes ended up on the runway simultaneously.
Nonetheless, the aviation industry’s message remains unchanged: it seems that the crew’s quick thinking saved hundreds of lives. Escape chutes were inflated and passengers were hurriedly escorted off the aircraft as soon as it came to a stop, even as smoke began to fill the cabin.
“I’m impressed with the pilots, crew, and passengers for what appears to have been a textbook evacuation in the worst possible circumstances,” a pilot from a significant European airline said, requesting to be anonymous since they aren’t allowed to talk on behalf of their company.
The robustness of contemporary aircraft and pilot training to manage unusual circumstances have evolved over decades to a position where we have the safest time in aviation since its inception, they continued.
“All passengers can be evacuated in 90 seconds thanks to procedures that have been improved as aircraft have gotten larger.” Certain airlines have allowed their flight attendants to start an evacuation if it’s disastrous, saving precious seconds by not waiting for the captain to do so.
“Written in blood” safety regulations
The pilot states that contemporary aviation’s safety records are “written in the blood of others who haven’t been so fortunate,” as JAL personnel are all too familiar with.
Mistakes turn into teaching moments that are “disseminated throughout the industry so the crew can all be better at their jobs.”
They point to an identical occurrence to Tuesday’s that occurred in 2019 with Aeroflot and from which lessons have been learnt, in which a jet caught fire upon landing in Moscow, leaving 41 of the 73 passengers dead.
Furthermore, they claim that the 1980 Saudia flight 163, in which all 301 passengers perished from smoke inhalation after the aircraft made a successful emergency landing in Riyadh but the pilots neglected to issue an evacuation order, catalyzed granting cabin crew the right to extricate passengers.
Another incident at Manchester Airport in the United Kingdom in 1985 involving British Airtours had a significant impact on future safety.
After an unsuccessful takeoff, the aircraft caught fire. Firefighters swiftly arrived and brought it to a stop on the runway, but not before 55 passengers perished, most of them from smoke inhalation.
According to Braithwaite, “a lot of recommendations came from that that influenced many of the features on modern aircraft.”
“The reasonable amount of room that surrounds the exits. floor-to-ceiling lights. The cabin crew evaluated the passenger’s ability to open the overwing escape. much more lucid exit signage. the supplies we use to construct the cottages. The Manchester fire was notable for its rapid emission of gases.
“Everything listed here helps ensure a successful evacuation.”
He points to Professor Helen Muir, his former coworker at Cranfield, as someone who altered the safety environment after that mishap. Her work included “incentivized” studies, in which participants received higher compensation the earlier they disembarked from the aircraft. Following that, their actions were tracked and reported to airlines and aircraft manufacturers.
The influence of cabin personnel, he claims, is what we now know causes people to quickly abandon an aeroplane.
Steven Erhlich, the chair of PilotsTogether, a pandemic-related organisation, concurs.
He states, “It’s too soon to comment on the incident’s specifics, but it’s clear that the crew performed in an exemplary fashion.”
The crews’ continual safety training, provided by the airline, JAL in this instance, paid off as the evacuation took place in less than 90 seconds. The key lesson, in my opinion, is that travellers should pay attention to the safety instructions and keep in mind that the crew members are skilled safety experts rather than just glorified food service employees.
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Cabin crew must practice emergency evacuations every year by international minimum safety requirements established by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO, a division of the United Nations). Additionally, makers of aircraft must demonstrate that a new aircraft can be entirely evacuated in ninety seconds.
Additionally, some airlines may have additional criteria. According to Braithwaite, British Airways has stricter guidelines for the materials used in the cabin in the wake of the Manchester tragedy. In the airline’s simulator, the pilot who talked with CNN performs evacuations every six months. In addition, they must rehearse in a simulator that is filled with fake smoke.
They claim, “That makes a difference from the training of the previous generation.” It eliminates the realistic scenario’s shocking element. It’s safer since it “cages the chimp,” giving us logical ideas and behaviours in place of instinctual ones.
According to Braithwaite, crew members become mentally used to the processes through regular training.
“As passengers, we don’t see that part, but it’s demanding,” he remarks.
“Usually, they’re waiting there contemplating their next move as we approach shore. They are staring out the window of the plane. They are well aware of the handle’s location. It’s this recent [here in Tokyo] “routinization” of behaviour.
For the rest of us, it’s a startling revelation, but the training is still relevant. And it’s crucial to treat that seriously.
