Narita airport, Japan's busiest international gateway, which opened in 1978, saw its first fatalities from an air accident there on the morning of March 23, when a FedEx MD-11 cargo plane crashed and burst into flames. The pilot and copilot, the only crew members, were killed.
The fatalities were also the first ever for a FedEx aircraft. If it had involved a passenger plane, the accident could have turned into an even more catastrophic disaster. Authorities must pinpoint the cause of the accident to help prevent similar incidents.
At about 6:50 a.m. on March 23, the FedEx cargo plane, arriving from China's Guangzhou, crashed on the airport's main, 4,000-meter Runway A. The plane's front section bounced off the runway twice before the plane tipped onto its left side and burst into flames. The left wing was destroyed and the plane rolled over. The fire was distinguished shortly after 9 a.m.