Monday, March 23, 2009

Actual Footage of FedEx Crash at Tokyo Narita This Morning

A cargo plane has crash-landed in a fireball near Tokyo, killing both crew members, officials say.

The accident happened as the Federal Express plane arrived in windy weather at Narita international airport from Guangzhou in China.

Japan's public broadcaster NHK showed dramatic footage of the plane bouncing as it landed and then bursting into flames on Monday morning local time.

It took firefighters about 30 minutes to bring the fire under control.

The accident happened at about 0650 local time on this morning (0550 Malaysian time).

The two crew were taken to hospital but both were confirmed dead.

Officials said the the pilot was 54 years old and the co-pilot was 49, and reports suggest they were both American, but this has not been officially confirmed.

Footage of the crash shows the plane landing hard, tipping on to its left wing and bursting into flame as it then rolled over.

The plane landed in strong winds, and Japan's meteorological agency had issued a gale warning for the area around Narita.

The jet was a McDonnell Douglas MD-11, according to Japan's Kyodo News.

One runway at Narita - Japan's largest airport - was closed after the accident, and a number of flights had to be diverted to other airports.





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