What happened
On the night of the accident, Flight 402 was operating a scheduled service from Hong Kong to Tokyo and Vancouver, traveling via Taipei, Kagoshima, and Ohshima. While positioned in a holding pattern at Kisarazu due to deteriorating weather at Tokyo International Airport (TIA), the flight initially prepared to divert to Taipei. However, after receiving notification that visibility had improved, the pilot requested to return to TIA and began a descent.
During the Ground Controlled Approach (GCA) for runway 33R, the aircraft maintained a steady course until approximately 1,500 feet altitude. As the flight progressed toward the threshold, the GCA controller noted the aircraft was slightly below the glide path and instructed the pilot to level off momentarily. Despite this instruction, the aircraft continued its descent. At roughly 2,800 feet from the touchdown point, the aircraft entered a sharp descent, causing the main landing gear to strike approach light number 14. The aircraft proceeded to strike several more light piers before impacting the airport sea wall with the lower fuselage. The impact caused the aircraft to be thrown over the sea wall near the end of runway 33R, where it was consumed by fire. The accident resulted in 64 fatalities and 8 injuries.
Findings
Investigations into the crash determined that the flight was performing a GCA approach under extremely challenging environmental conditions, characterized by fog and smoke that reduced visibility to less than half a mile. While the descent appeared normal until approximately 3,900 feet from the touchdown point, the aircraft then underwent a steep rate of descent. This maneuver was attributed to an intentional action by the pilot-in-command attempting to fly a final approach at a lower altitude than standard. It was concluded that poor visibility caused by fog misled the pilot's judgment during the approach.