379 Lives Were Saved in Tokyo Crash by 1985 Disaster

The deadliest single-aircraft accident in aviation history was that of Japan Airlines flight 123, which crashed on August 12, 1985, after a faulty repair by Boeing. Five hundred and twenty of the 524 people aboard the plane died. Nearly four decades later, all 379 passengers and crew aboard a Japan Airlines plane survived after it collided with a Coast Guard plane (killing five of the six people who were on the Coast Guard plane) Tuesday. Analysts say the airline, and Japan in general, took rigorous steps after that 1985 disaster to ensure it never happened again—and that, in the words of one pilot who spoke to CNN, it's safety standards "written in the blood of others who haven't been so fortunate" that saved the lives of those 379 people. More coverage around the Tuesday collision:

• CNN has more on the safety culture at Japan Airlines here. (To make sure employees don't forget the 1985 accident, wreckage is on display at the airline's headquarters.)
• Bloomberg looks at the minutes before the Japan Airlines plane was engulfed in flames, noting it had just received clearance to land and struck the smaller aircraft as it was first touching down. It's not yet clear whether the Coast Guard plane, which was preparing to deliver aid to victims of Japan's recent earthquakes, had also received clearance.
• Passenger accounts describing "chaos" on the Japan Airlines flight are starting to come out. One says the entire cabin filled with smoke within minutes, the BBC reports. Passengers say everyone had to disembark from the front, but that the crew did a good job of directing them and making sure no one wasted time trying to save their luggage.
• Another described feeling heat and seeing flames, NBC News reports. Multiple people said they heard a bang and thought perhaps the plane had hit a bird before realizing the situation was much worse.
• Experts explain to CBS News that in addition to safety procedures that allow all passengers to exit via emergency chutes within 90 seconds, the interiors of newer airplanes also likely helped Japan Airlines passengers to survive, as they are built to withstand fire.

(More Japan Airlines stories.)