By Femail reporter

Published: 4:30 PM EDT, March 20, 2024 | Updated: 4:30 PM EDT, March 20, 2024

President Biden said Thursday that he and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel were heading for a “come-to-Jesus meeting” on the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, according to an audio clip of the president’s remarks posted on social media on Friday.

Mr. Biden’s comment underlines growing tensions between him and Mr. Netanyahu in recent weeks, as civilian casualties in Gaza have risen inexorably and Mr. Biden has come under political pressure at home and abroad for more to force Israel to agree to a ceasefire.

In recent days, Mr. Biden had expressed hope that a ceasefire of at least six weeks would be reached by Ramadan, the Muslim holy month that starts in a few days. But Israel and Hamas have reached an impasse in negotiations over the return of vulnerable hostages taken in Israel during the October 7 attack in exchange for a permanent ceasefire and the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza.

When reporters asked on Friday whether a deal could still be reached during Ramadan, Mr Biden said: “It looks difficult.”

The president’s earlier “come-to-Jesus” comments were captured on a hot mic during what Mr. Biden thought was a private conversation with Senator Michael Bennet, Democrat of Colorado, after the State of the Union address.

According to a recording of the conversation, Mr. Bennet encouraged the president to “keep pushing” on the issue of humanitarian aid to Gaza as Israel wages its war against Hamas, a war for which the United States has provided funding and weapons.

“I told him, ‘Bibi’ — and don’t repeat this — but ‘you and I are going to have a come-to-Jesus meeting,’” Mr. Biden said, referring to the prime minister by his nickname.

Mr Biden was told by an aide that his microphone was still on and that the call was being recorded. “I’m on a hot mic here?” Mr. Biden said. “Good. That’s good.”

Mr. Biden had just used his prime-time address to Congress to strongly call on Israel to limit civilian casualties and allow increased amounts of food, medicine and other aid into the besieged enclave. Gaza health authorities say 30,000 people have been killed in the Israeli offensive on Gaza, most of them civilians. Millions of residents have been displaced and hundreds of thousands more face famine.

“However, Israel also has a fundamental responsibility to protect innocent civilians in Gaza,” Biden said in his speech. “This war has taken a greater toll on innocent civilians than all previous wars in Gaza combined.”

Mr. Biden strongly supported Israel’s right to invade Gaza after Hamas fighters crossed the border on Oct. 7 and, according to Israeli authorities, killed more than 1,200 Israelis in border towns, committing atrocities and taking hostages.

The United States has continued to supply weapons to Israel and block UN resolutions demanding a ceasefire, supporting Mr Netanyahu’s position that a permanent ceasefire would be a victory for Hamas, which the United States considers a terrorist group.

But the civilian toll of Israel’s bombing campaign, coupled with rising hunger and disease in Gaza, has provoked international outrage, and calls have increased for the United States to use its influence with Israel to broker a ceasefire to create fires. At home, Biden has faced a backlash over the issue of left-wing Democrats and Arab Americans who were important to his winning coalition in 2020, particularly in the battleground state of Michigan.

Biden’s speech on Thursday seemed aimed in part at mending those fences. He also announced that the US military would build a floating pier for Gaza.

“To Israel’s leadership I say this: Humanitarian aid cannot be a secondary consideration or a bargaining chip,” Mr. Biden said in his speech. “Protecting and saving innocent lives must be a priority.”

Mr. Biden slyly acknowledged his comment to Senator Bennet when asked about it before boarding Air Force One on Friday. “I didn’t say that,” he said, then told reporters, “You guys bugged me.”

The Federal Court has released a trove of never-before-seen images and audio as part of Bruce Lehrmann’s defamation battle with Network 10 and Lisa Wilkinson.

The Federal Court on Monday released a trove of audio material and CCTV footage as part of Lehrmann’s successful defamation lawsuit against broadcaster and journalist Lisa Wilkinson.

The former political aide sued over Ms Higgins’ interview with The Project, in which she alleged she was raped by Mr Lehrmann in Parliament House. Judge Michael Lee is expected to deliver his verdict in the coming months.

The court on Monday uploaded CCTV footage of Ms Higgins, wearing a white cocktail dress, and Mr Lehrmann entering the Parliament Buildings in the early hours of Saturday, March 23, 2019.

After a night out with colleagues at two bars, the two staffers entered Parliament House just before 1.45am.

An audio recording released by the court captures the moment Mr. Lehrmann buzzes the intercom and asks a security guard to let him in.

“Oh hey buddy, Bruce Lehrmann here with Minister Linda Reynolds,” Mr. Lehrmann says on the recording.

‘We have been asked to collect some documents. I forgot my pass.’

“Uh, just a minute,” the guard replies.

“Thanks mate, we’re just at the ministerial entrance,” says Mr Lehrmann.

During the trial, lawyers for Network 10 and Ms Wilkinson attacked the explanations Mr Lehrmann gave for entering Parliament House in the early morning.

In his testimony, he said he went back to Senator Reynolds’ office to collect his keys and, while sitting at his desk, took notes on ministerial briefings.

On the witness stand, he admitted he lied to get past security.

When asked by his barrister Steve Whybrow SC why he did not explain that he had left his keys on his desk and needed them to get into his apartment this weekend, he said: ‘I thought security would say ‘go leave and come back next’. week’ and I had to go home.’

But Channel 10’s lawyers branded it a “serious lie” that “involved Senator Reynolds in his deception.”

“If the real reason Mr. Lehrmann sought access to the ministerial suite was to get his keys back, he could have explained to security that he had locked himself out of his apartment over the weekend,” the network’s lawyers said in their final statement. released by the court.

“He accepted that he could have told security that, but said he did not tell security that reason because they would have thought it was a ‘small thing’.”

At the heart of the case is what happened behind closed doors in Senator Reynolds’ suite between 1:48 a.m. and 2:30 a.m. on the morning of March 23, 2019.

Ms Higgins has claimed she passed out and woke up on a sofa and Mr Lehrmann sat on top of her and raped her.

Mr Lehrmann has denied having any sexual contact with Ms Higgins, saying that when he entered the senator’s office he went to the left to his desk and she went to the right and that he did not see her again that morning.

CCTV footage released by the court on Monday shows Ms Higgins and Mr Lehrmann entering parliament at around 1.45am and then leaving separately 7.5 hours apart.

The security vision shows them approaching the security checkpoint and putting their belongings in a bin before walking through.

Mr. Lehrmann, in a blue shirt and black pants, goes first, followed by Ms. Higgins.

She goes through it twice, but is told to take off her shoes after activating the metal detector.

She struggles to put on her shoes and decides to continue with her high heels in her hand and her bag under her arm.

From another angle, Ms. Higgins can be seen starting a short, light jog in an attempt to catch up with Mr. Lehrmann, who had already walked away.

Further CCTV footage shows Mr Lehrmann and Ms Higgins being led through the corridors of Parliament House by a security guard, Nikola Anderson.

Mr. Lehrmann pulls his phone out of his pocket and looks at it as they approach Senator Reynolds’ office and are escorted inside.

They enter through the doors at 1:48 am and 15 seconds, according to the camera images.

What happened in the senator’s office over the next 45 minutes is the crux of the matter.

Mr Lehrmann is seen leaving parliament at 2.33am, walking out through security checkpoints before exiting through a gate.

Ms Higgins is seen on security camera footage leaving Parliament House through the security checkpoint just after 10am. She wears a jacket she took from a box in the senator’s office and waves to a security guard as she passes.

Disturbing audio from air traffic control has revealed a moment of utter panic on a private jet moments before it crashed on a Florida highway, killing two people.

The sound captured on board the Bombardier Challenger 60 aircraft appears to be a sound of panicked voices or a malfunctioning aircraft, but it is impossible to say.

This was the last transmission from the plane, which had five people on board, before it crashed on I-75 outside Naples Friday afternoon at 3:15 p.m.

Three people survived the tragedy, although details about whether they were injured have not been shared.

None of those on board have been identified and a cause has yet to be determined, although one expert suggested the loss of both engines could have been caused by a bird strike.

The plane was one minute away from making an emergency landing at Naples airport, but another audio moment shows how the pilot already knew they wouldn't make it.

“Okay, Challenger, Hop-A-Jet 823, lost both engines, emergency. I'm making an emergency landing,' the pilot said.

Air traffic control told colleagues that there was an emergency and informed the pilot that he could land on runway 23.

But the pilot replied: 'We can land, but we won't make it to the runway. We lost both engines.”

Painful seconds of silence pass before a moment of pure, unintelligible panic hits the pilot.

Air traffic control sends back, but it is already too late. The next transmission is another warning from the controller that an emergency was in progress.

“Everyone on standby, there's an emergency going on, everyone on standby,” she said.

Seconds later, a rescue helicopter requests permission and it is granted immediately. The plane landed just 7.5 kilometers from the airport.

Numerous aviation disasters, even involving much larger jetliners, have been caused by bird strikes, including the 'Miracle on the Hudson' US Airways Flight 1549 in 2009.

Dramatic photos and videos taken by passing motorists showed the burning wreckage and debris strewn across the highway.

One video showed an explosion rocking the burning plane, and seconds later the charred left wing fell off.

At least one brave motorist was seen rushing to the crashed plane, hoping to help the survivors despite the extreme danger.

According to data from FlightAware, the flight was en route from Ohio State University Airport to Naples Airport, although the college says the plane was only using its facilities and had no connection to the university itself.

The plane was owned by Hop-a-Jet, a Florida-based private charter company, and had no ties to the university.

The company said it had received “confirmed reports of an accident involving one of our leased aircraft near Naples” and that it would send a team to the crash site.

“Our immediate concern is for the well-being of our passengers, crew members and their families,” the report said.

The Federal Aviation Authority closed all southbound lanes for 24 hours while they investigated the accident.

One FAA investigator was already on scene and more were expected to arrive this weekend. A preliminary report should be issued within 30 days.

Police and emergency workers flooded the scene and state forces opened the northern country only four hours after the accident.

Residents of Iceland's Reykjanes Peninsula faced even more devastation this week as they experienced the third volcanic eruption since December.

Around 5:30 a.m. local time, an explosion tore open a two-mile-long gorge, sending plumes of lava as high as 200 feet into the air.

Now a creepy recording has revealed the sounds that warned the volcano would erupt again.

Seismic activity recorded by Northwestern University's Earthtunes system reveals the ominous groaning and clicking that preceded the explosion.

And you can even hear the terrifying sound of the earth cracking open as the devastating eruption occurred.

The eruption released massive amounts of lava across the site, destroying everything in its path.

But before it burst through the Earth, it was preceded by weeks of escalating seismic activity.

The Icelandic Meteorological Office reported that there were 200 earthquakes in the eruption area in the week to February 5.

This was caused by the magma chamber beneath the volcano refilling and building up pressure.

The Met Office estimated that there were nine million cubic meters of magma in the underground reservoir before the eruption.

This audio recording condenses the 24 hours of seismic activity leading up to the explosion into a human-audible format.

Normally, the rumbling of seismic activity in the Earth's crust is at too low a frequency to be picked up by human ears.

But condensing an entire day of shooting into just a minute and a half raises the pitch to a point where you can hear the earth shifting.

In the recording you can hear how the day leading up to the eruption was punctuated by quiet clicks over the background rumbling.

In the run-up to previous eruptions on the Reykjanes Peninsula, similar clicks and bumps were caused by magma pushing through the crust.

These 'magma intrusions' produce shock waves strong enough to be picked up by seismographs and are a strong sign of increased volcanic activity.

And this shot even seems to capture the moment the volcano erupted.

Shortly before 5:30 a.m. you can hear the first of a series of rapid clicks and cracks that almost sound like breaking ice.

These clicks become louder before suddenly peaking around 5:55 am and again shortly after 6:30 am.

This is consistent with reporting on the eruption from the Icelandic Meteorological Office (IMO).

In a statement, the IMO said: 'At 5.30am this morning, intense small earthquake activity began north-east of Sylingarfell. About 30 minutes later, an eruption began in the same area.”

Iceland has extremely high levels of volcanic activity due to its location above the Mid-Atlantic Ridge.

This crack in the ocean floor divides the Eurasian and North American tectonic plates and allows eruptions to occur regularly.

The island itself experiences an eruption about every four to five years, but the Reykjanes Peninsula has lain dormant for eight centuries.

There have now been five eruptions since August 2022 and three since December alone.

This has led volcanologists to say that this was likely the start of a new era of activity in the region.

The biggest concern is that lava from this latest eruption will travel towards the city of Grindavik, 30 miles (48 kilometers) southwest of Iceland's capital Reykjavik.

Since November, Grindavik's 3,800 residents have been evacuated due to increased volcanic activity in the area.

In January, an eruption sent streams of lava flowing into the city, destroying three houses after a nearby defensive wall was overwhelmed.

The lava from this latest eruption is currently moving away from populated areas and is unlikely to damage any more homes.

“Lava is currently flowing mainly westward and the flow appears to be slightly less than at the beginning of the December 18 eruption,” IMO said.

However, Iceland's Civil Protection Agency has now declared a state of emergency after lava flows damaged vital hot water pipes.

The damage has left 20,000 people struggling to access hot water and recovery could take days.

The agency has warned residents of the affected area to conserve hot water and electricity and schools in the area are now closed.

There are also concerns that lava could hit important pipelines near the Svartsengi geothermal power plant.

If this were to happen, another 30,000 people could be affected.

Last night the IMO confirmed that the intensity of the eruption has continued to decrease.

The IMO notes that reduced lava flow indicates that less pressure has now built up beneath the rift, raising hopes that further damage can be avoided.

Audio has emerged of an alleged confrontation between Heart palpitations from Hollywood Jacob Elordi and a KIIS FM staffer.

Audio of the Saturday walk-in was played on Monday morning's episode of The Kyle and Jackie O Show.

In it, video producer Joshua Fox, 32, approaches Elordi, 26, with an empty jar and asks the actor if he can fill it with his bathwater and “send it to the studio” for host Jackie 'O' Henderson, which Fox claimed. is 'a big fan of the film'.

The request is a reference to an infamous scene in Elordi's film Saltburn, in which another character drinks Elordi's used bathwater.

“You're kidding,” a seemingly irritated Elordi replies.

“Are you filming?” he then asks, as Fox confirms that he is.

“Can't you man up, please?” says Elordi.

An executive producer from KIIS FM subsequently claimed that Elordi's entourage forced Fox to delete the footage, but he was later able to retrieve it from his recently deleted files.

The altercation is said to have happened outside the Clovelly Hotel in Sydney's eastern suburbs at 3.30pm on Saturday.

NSW Police said an investigation had been launched after a 32-year-old was allegedly assaulted by a 26-year-old.

Daily Mail Australia can reveal police have seized CCTV footage of the alleged attack. Mr Fox has yet to make an official statement.

“The man suffered no injuries,” a NSW Police spokesperson said.

“The investigation into the incident continues.”

Elordi, who recently starred in the blockbuster Saltburn, had been socializing at the hotel for several hours before the alleged incident unfolded.

The Australian Hollywood star, 26, raised eyebrows earlier this month when he made disparaging comments about The Kissing Booth film franchise, which he starred in between 2018 and 2021, in his GQ Men of the Year cover story.

“I didn't want to make those movies before I made those movies,” he told the publication, adding, “Those movies are ridiculous. They are not universal. They are an escape.”

But fans of The Kissing Booth have criticized Elordi online, calling him “ungrateful” and “disrespectful” to his former colleagues.

“Jacob Elordi needs to understand that if you shit on a project like he did, he's also shitting on his co-stars, the creators and most importantly the fans,” one user wrote.

'Those films are important to many fans. Don't ignore them just because you've suddenly stepped up,” they added.

Another agreed: “I hate actors who downplay their humble beginnings, where their careers started.”

The Kissing Booth was Elordi's second feature film role and thanks to record-breaking fans, he quickly became a household name.

Elordi is currently Down Under filming his role as Australian Imperial Force soldier Dorrigo Evans in Amazon Prime Video's five-part adaptation of Richard Flanagan's 2013 novel The Narrow Road to the Deep North.

Elordi will next reprise his role as 'psychopathic' East Highland High School quarterback Nate Jacobs in the third season of Euphoria (with a five-year time jump), which began filming in December.

Daily Mail Australia contacted Clovelly Hotel for comment.

The announcement was made in an X-post by Enrique, an engineer at the Musk-owned platform. In his post, Enrique revealed that Android users can now make both audio and video calls.

Billionaire Elon Musk has introduced several groundbreaking features for the X app. The feature is currently only available for Android users, but a rollout for Apple iOS devices is expected soon.

Eligible Users

The announcement was made in an X-post by Enrique, an engineer at the Musk-owned platform. In his post, Enrique revealed that Android users can now make both audio and video calls with their followers in the latest version of the X app.

“Audio and video calling on X is slowly rolling out to Android users today! Update your app and call your mother,” Enrique said in the post on X on Friday.

Notably, while the feature is very exciting and very useful, it is only being rolled out exclusively to premium X users. Hopefully the feature will be made available to all users on the platform soon.

To access audio and video calls on X:

To make audio and/or video calls on The options include people in the user's address book, accounts they follow, and verified users.

Eligible users can select multiple options from the above categories.

It is worth noting that this feature will be available exclusively to premium users. To manage their audio and video call preferences, users can navigate to Settings > Privacy & Security > Direct Messages. From there, they can choose who can initiate calls, with options such as people in their address book, those they follow, and verified users. Users also have the flexibility to select multiple options from these categories.

Again, the feature is only available to premium users.

Golden 'tick' available at a never-before-seen price

Earlier this month, X announced a new basic paid tier for verified organizations. Qualifying accounts can now get the premium Gold Check-Mark at an unprecedented price of $200 per month or $2,000 per year.

The gold badge, which comes bundled with additional benefits, is now available at a significantly lower price tag compared to the “full access” membership that costs $1,000 per month.

“Designed for smaller businesses, subscribers receive ad credits and priority support to enable faster growth on X,” the microblogging site said in a post on the platform's official website.

By Daily Mail Reporter

Published: 6:57 PM EST, January 3, 2024 | Updated: 6:57 PM EST, January 3, 2024

A chilling audio recording captured the moment air traffic control cleared a Japaneses passenger jet to land – just two minutes before a deadly crash.

The JAL aircraft smashed into a Coast Guard plane and erupted in flames at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport on Tuesday. Miraculously, all 379 on the Airbus A350 survived, but five of the six Coast Guard crew were killed and its captain seriously injured.

Amid reports that the police are investigating possible professional negligence in the case, the air traffic controller and the captain of the De Havilland Dash-8 Coast Guard turboprop have given competing accounts of the deadly crash.

Japanese authorities said on Wednesday the A350 was given permission to land, but the Coast Guard plane was not cleared for take-off, based on control tower transcripts. However, a source for the Coast Guard said its pilot had received the green light to take off, the outlet said, contradicting the controller’s account.

With the probe ongoing, the exact cause of the crash remains a mystery, which deepened on Wednesday with the emergence of air traffic control recordings.

The audio file, published online, appears to reveal the moment the JAL plane – flight 516 – was told to continue its approach to runway 34R at 5.43pm (0843GMT).

It was then given clearance to land at 5.45pm, the file shows.

That was two minutes before authorities say the collision occurred on the same runway at 5.47pm, according to the recordings posted at liveATC.net.

‘Clear to land 34R Japan Airlines 516,’ a controller can be heard saying in one recording, referring to the passenger jet by its flight number.

Reuters news agency reported that it could not clearly make out air traffic control instructions given to the Coast Guard plane on recordings from liveATC.net. 

Public broadcaster NHK was among media that said officials had offered conflicting reports on the instructions given to the coast guard plane, raising questions over whether it was told to approach and stop before the runway or take off.

NHK quoted an air traffic control source as saying that the Coast Guard had been told to stop short of the runway. 

The Coast Guard has declined to comment on the circumstances of the crash.

The Japan Safety Transport Board (JTSB) is investigating the incident, with participation by agencies in France, where the Airbus airplane was built, and Britain, where its two Rolls-Royce engines were made, people familiar with the matter said.

Officials have also retrieved the Coast Guard plane’s black box.

It is understood that officials plan to interview the captains of the two planes in their efforts to establish the cause of the crash. Police have set up a special unit to investigate the runway and planned to interview those involved, a spokesperson said, but declined to say if they were examining the negligence concerns.

The Coast Guard captain, the only survivor on the plane, was named as Captain Genki Miyamoto, 39. He reportedly pulled himself from the wreckage before he radioed for help, telling his base: ‘The aircraft exploded on the runway. I escaped. The [condition of the] other crew members is unknown.’ 

At a series of press conferences since the crash, officials and airline executives have been asked what information crew received from traffic control and why both planes ended up on the same runway.

In a statement on Wednesday, JAL said the aircraft recognised and repeated the landing permission from air traffic control before approaching and touching down.

All passengers and crew were evacuated within 20 minutes of the crash, but the aircraft, engulfed in flames, burned for more than six hours, the airline said.

The plane, one of six Coast Guard aircraft based at the airport, had been due to deliver aid to regions hit by Monday’s earthquake of magnitude 7.6 that has killed 64, while survivors face freezing temperatures and prospects of heavy rain.

‘There’s a strong possibility there was a human error,’ said aviation analyst Hiroyuki Kobayashi, who is a former JAL pilot. 

‘Aircraft accidents very rarely occur due to a single problem, so I think that this time too there were two or three issues that led to the accident.’

As the sun rose in Japan on Wednesday, shocking pictures from the scene showed the charred remains of the Airbus A350 jet, laying bare just how devastating the disaster could have been. 

Chilling pictures of the A350 jet in the daylight showed nothing but the wings and piles of ash remaining after the inferno ripped through it on Tuesday night.

As the investigation gets underway, JAL last night said its crewmembers confirmed the landing permission from the Haneda controller and repeated the order back before they conducted approach and landing operations.

‘There were no issues with the aircraft at the time of departure from the New Chitose Airport and during the flight,’ the airline added.

The pilot was given permission to land but probably could not see the coastguard’s smaller Dash-8 plane below as it taxied on the runway, JAL chiefs said. 

The JAL flight had flown out of Shin Chitose airport in Japan and was landing at Haneda airport when it collided with the JCG plane on runway C. 

Safety experts have hailed the evacuation of JAL flight 516 before it burst into flames as ‘nothing short of a miracle’, with many praising the cabin crew for getting all the passengers off safely.

The in-flight announcement system did not work during the evacuation and heroic crewmembers had to use megaphones to give instructions, Japan Airlines said in a statement, making the feat even more incredible.

Fourteen people on the passenger plane were injured, according to Japan Airlines, but none of the injuries appeared to be life-threatening.  

Passengers have told of their terrifying experiences escaping the plane, which caught on fire as it skidded down the tarmac shortly before 6pm (09.00 GMT).

Video and images shared on social media showed passengers shouting inside the plane’s smoke-filled cabin and running across the tarmac after escaping via an evacuation slide.

Television footage showed flames coming out of windows and the plane’s nose on the ground as rescue workers sprayed it with several water hoses.

There was also burning debris on the runway.

As people slid to safety, dozens of fire engines with blue and red flashing lights sprayed the flames, but the entire fuselage was soon ablaze.

‘It was getting hot inside the plane, and I thought, to be honest, I would not survive,’ one female passenger told broadcaster NHK.

‘I thought we landed normally. But then I realised I was smelling smoke,’ a woman with a small child told NHK.

‘I needed to protect my daughter. That was the only thing in my mind,’ she added.

Another passenger described surviving the crash as a ‘miracle’.

‘I bounced off my seat from the impact when we landed,’ the 28-year-old man told Nikkei Asia. ‘We made it just in the nick of time. It’s a miracle we survived.’

Wide angle images of the scene showed a large section of the runway covered in flames, with debris littering huge swathes of the tarmac. Meanwhile, footage taken from inside the jet showed how the cabin filled with thick smoke.

Swedish passenger Anton Deibe, 17, told Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet that ‘the entire cabin was filled with smoke within a few minutes. We threw ourselves down on the floor. Then the emergency doors were opened and we threw ourselves at them.

‘The smoke in the cabin stung like hell. It was a hell. We have no idea where we are going so we just run out into the field. It was chaos,’ added Deibe, who was traveling with his parents and sister.

In one clip a child’s voice can be heard shouting: ‘Let us get out quickly! Let us get out quickly!’ 

‘I was wondering what happened and then I felt the airplane tilted to the side at the runway and felt a big bump,’ said Satoshi Yamake, 59, a telecommunications company worker who was on board. 

‘The flight attendants told us to stay calm and instructed us to get off the plane.’ 

‘I heard an explosion about 10 minutes after everyone and I got off the plane,’ said 28-year-old passenger Tsubasa Sawada. ‘I can only say it was a miracle, we could have died if we were late.’ 

It was the first major incident involving severe damage to an A350, one of the newest large passenger planes. 

Japan’s Transport Minister Saito said the cause of the accident was unclear and the JTSB, police and other departments would continue to investigate.

Haneda is one of the busiest airports in Japan, and many people travel over the New Year holidays. 

All its runways were closed following the accident, causing dozens of other planes to divert. A transport ministry official said three runways had since resumed operations.

Japan has not suffered a serious commercial aviation accident in decades.

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida praised the deceased crew members on their way to help the victims of the quake that killed at least 62 people.

‘These were employees who had a high sense of mission and responsibility for the affected areas,’ he said Tuesday.

In 1985, a JAL jumbo jet flying from Tokyo to Osaka crashed, killing 520 passengers and crew, in one of the world’s deadliest crashes involving a single flight.

The world’s worst civil aviation disaster also happened on the ground when two Boeing 747s collided at Los Rodeos Airport in Tenerife in 1977, killing 583 people.

‘I can’t speculate on what happened here but human error will probably be found as a contributing cause,’ Doug Drury, aviation expert at Central Queensland University, told AFP news agency.

‘Airlines are required to be able to empty an airplane of all passengers and crew within 90 seconds. The flight crews train for events quite frequently in simulation and it is a complicated process that as we saw was completed without fail,’ he said.

‘A key component here was that no one tried to grab their carry-on bags.’

• Camilla will personally star in the podcast, which will launch from January 8

By Royal Editor

Published: 7:02 PM EST, December 15, 2023 | Updated: 7:02 PM EST, December 15, 2023