We often complain that things are evolving too slowly in Japan but, for once, we have to admit that an outdated regulation probably helped.
Overseas media praised JAL’s crew for pulling all 367 passengers safely off a burning jet after a collision with a Coast Guard plane at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport in early January. Soon after, however, a controversy erupted on the Japanese social media, followed by other mass media, over the deaths of two pets in the cargo hold.
Unlike many overseas airlines, Japanese carriers do not allow pets on board, with the exception of one airline, which allows small cats and dogs in special cages on some flights, with a signed promise that owners will leave their pets behind in the event of an accident or emergency evacuation. Like many other outdated regulations in Japan, this one was created when dogs and cats were more commonly kept outdoors in Japan and no one questioned the fact that pets were treated as “baggage.”
So, while we often stress that Japan is changing for good with the new regulations that are being put in place, honesty obliges us to say when it is not the case. This time, several hundred lives were saved because of an outdated regulation, which would probably have been removed if things were changing faster.
It is very unfortunate that two pets were lost, but let’s remember one of the key points aviation experts emphasized in this successful evacuation: the crew effectively instructed the passengers to leave all their belongings behind.
KH – Feb.15, 2024