Watch | Japan Airlines plane collides with coast guard aircraft on Tokyo airport runway, erupts into flames

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Live footage on Japanese public broadcaster NHK World showed the aircraft catching fire as it skidded down the runway, with fire-fighting teams attempting to extinguish the flames.

A Japan Airlines spokesperson told news agency Reuters the aircraft had departed from Shin-Chitose airport in Hokkaido. Meanwhile, a Haneda airport spokesperson said all runways have been closed after the incident.

Photos and videos shared on social media showed passengers shouting inside the smoke-filled cabin and running across the runway away from the blaze.

The Coast Guard said the collision involved one of its planes that was headed to Niigata airport on Japan’s west coast to deliver aid to those caught up in a 7.6 magnitude earthquake that struck on New Year’s Day, killing at least 48 people.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida instructed relevant agencies to coordinate to assess the damage swiftly and provide information to the public, according to his office.

(With Reuters inputs)

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