Successful evacuation from burning Japan Airlines jet highlights dogged devotion to safety

By ELAINE KURTENBACH and MARI YAMAGUCHI
Associated Press

BANGKOK (AP) — The swift and safe evacuation of a Japan Airlines jet that caught fire after hitting a Coast Guard aircraft while it was landing Tuesday at Tokyo’s Haneda airport reflects the carrier’s dogged dedication to safety, born of hard experience. The Aug. 12, 1985, crash of a JAL flight into a mountain north of Tokyo that killed 520 people was the world’s worst single-aircraft disaster. Only 17 people suffered slight injuries while fleeing the flight Tuesday evening as the plane blazed. Airline safety analysts credited the rapid evacuation to stringent training and passengers who heeded instructions and left their belongings behind.