35th Anniversary of JAL Flight 123 Crash

Above, most of JAL Flight 123's vertical stabilizer was blown off. 

From Japan Today:

On Aug 12, 1985, a packed Flight 123, en route from Tokyo to Osaka, crashed 40 minutes after take-off.

I remember this airline crash. It is hard to believe that today marks 35 years since it happened. Family members of the crash victims commemorated the crash by hiking to the crash site.

Above, another view of JAL Flight 123.

From Japan Today:

MAEBASHI, Gunma - Relatives on Wednesday commemorated the 35th anniversary of the Japan Airlines jetliner crash that killed 520 passengers and crew in the world's deadliest single-aircraft accident. 

Members of bereaved families climbed the steep mountain trail to the Boeing 747's crash site on Osutaka Ridge in Gunma Prefecture, northwest of Tokyo, to mourn their loved ones. The annual trek was spread over a few days this year, with participation restricted mostly to kin to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus. 

The trail was damaged by a typhoon last year but had been sufficiently restored to allow access to the crash site. 

Kuniko Miyajima, 73, who lost her 9-year-old son Ken in the crash, slowly walked up the trail, stopping several times to rest.   

In 1987, a Japanese government investigation commission concluded that the accident was caused by improper repairs conducted by Boeing Co on the plane's rear pressure bulkhead, which ruptured, blowing off the aircraft's vertical stabilizer and destroying its hydraulics.

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