Unclaimed items from 1985 Japan Airlines disaster go on display in Tokyo

[Sir Pompously]

Unclaimed items from 1985 Japan Airlines disaster go on display in Tokyo


A watch that stopped due to the impact of the crash is pictured at the Japan Airlines (JAL) safety promotion center on Aug. 8.


A warped, broken glasses frame is pictured at the JAL safety promotion center on Aug. 8.Seventeen unclaimed items from a Japan Airlines jumbo jet crash in 1985 that killed more than 500 people have gone on display in Tokyo in line with the 23rd anniversary of the disaster.

The items are being displayed at a Japan Airlines safety promotion center in Tokyo's Ota-ku. Tuesday marks the 23rd anniversary of the fatal accident.

Japan Airlines officials said that there are still about 2,700 unclaimed items that were found around the crash site in Ueno, Gunma Prefecture, being stored at Haneda Airport in Tokyo.

On display at the safety promotion center are five watches, three pairs of glasses, three keys, three camera lenses, two ball-point pens and one calculator. The watches all show a time around 6:56 p.m., when the flight crashed. The frame of one of the pairs of glasses is bent out of shape and broken, and one key is bent -- testimony of the huge impact of the crash.

At first, Japan Airlines told bereaved family members of the victims that it wanted to enshrine the items at a memorial site in Ueno after cremating them, but there was a strong request from the family members to preserve the items, so the accident would not be forgotten.

The airline changed its stance after a spate of safety trouble in 2005. Rather than turning the accident into a negative legacy, it decided to use it to get back to basics over safety awareness. It founded the safety promotion center in April 2006 with the intention of training employees, displaying parts of the wreckage and notes that passengers left behind for their families.

Japan Airlines officials considered with family members which items to display, choosing ones that conveyed the tragedy of the accident. The display, which began on Monday for family members and other related people, will be open to the public from Aug. 18.

http://mdn.mainichi.jp/national/news/20080812p2a00m0na010000c.html

[Irisbus Rider]

How eerie.