Japan airlines flight makes emergency descent, passengers write goodbye messages
Tokyo: Passengers on a Japan Airlines flight from Shanghai to Tokyo had a terrifying experience when their plane suddenly dropped 26,000 feet in less than 10 minutes. The Boeing 737 aircraft, flying as flight JL8696, was forced to descend quickly after a mechanical issue affected the air pressure in the cabin, reports India Today.
The flight, which took off on June 30 from Shanghai Pudong Airport, was being operated under a codeshare with Spring Japan, a budget airline owned by Japan Airlines. There were 191 people onboard.
Around 6:53 PM local time, a problem with the plane’s pressurisation system triggered alarms in the cockpit. The pilots declared an emergency and began a rapid descent from 36,000 feet to about 10,500 feet. As the pressure dropped, oxygen masks dropped from the ceiling, and the cabin crew gave emergency instructions to passengers.
Many passengers were terrified, with some writing down their final messages, including will notes and personal information like bank details and insurance policies. Some had been asleep when the plane suddenly dropped and were jolted awake.
Despite the panic, the pilots safely diverted the plane to Kansai International Airport in Osaka, where it landed at 8:50 PM. No one was hurt.
This incident comes at a time of growing worry over Boeing’s aircraft safety. Just last month, a crash involving a Boeing plane on the Ahmedabad to London route killed 275 people, raising global concerns about Boeing’s performance and safety standards.
A #JapanAirlines #flight from #Shanghai to #Tokyo made an emergency landing at Kansai Airport last night after a cabin depressurization alert. The #Boeing 737-800, carrying 191 people, landed safely. No injuries reported. #China #Japan pic.twitter.com/wCneZ3nkk0
— Shanghai Daily (@shanghaidaily) July 1, 2025
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NATO, others turn down US call for help in Hormuz: Trump
Washington (PTI): President Donald Trump on Tuesday said NATO and most of US' other allies have rejected his calls to help secure the Strait of Hormuz as the war with Iran entered the third week.
In a social media post, Trump asserted that Iran’s military has been “decimated” and he no longer felt the need for assistance from NATO countries or anyone else.
Last week, Trump had sought help from European nations and others who depend on oil supplies transiting from the Hormuz Strait to safeguard the critical waterway.
“The United States has been informed by most of our NATO “Allies” that they don’t want to get involved with our Military Operation against the Terrorist Regime of Iran, in the Middle East, this, despite the fact that almost every Country strongly agreed with what we are doing, and that Iran cannot, in any way, shape, or form, be allowed to have a Nuclear Weapon,” the US President said in a post on Truth Social.
Iran's attacks on Gulf nations and its grip on the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world's oil is transported, have sparked increasing concerns of a global energy crisis and are unnerving the world economy.
“I am not surprised by their action, however, because I always considered NATO, where we spend Hundreds of Billions of Dollars per year protecting these same Countries, to be a one-way street — We will protect them, but they will do nothing for us, in particular, in a time of need,” Trump said.
He said Australia, Japan and South Korea too have turned down his call for help.
“Fortunately, we have decimated Iran’s Military – Their Navy is gone, their Air Force is gone, their Anti-Aircraft and Radar is gone and perhaps, most importantly, their Leaders, at virtually every level, are gone, never to threaten us, our Middle Eastern Allies, or the World, again,” Trump said.
He said that given the scale of recent military successes, the US no longer "need" or desires assistance from NATO countries, adding that it never relied on such support in the first place.
Speaking as President of the United States, the "most powerful" country in the world, "we do not need" help from anyone, Trump said.
The West Asia conflict began on February 28 when the US-Israeli combine conducted airstrikes on Iran.
The Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway that connects the Persian Gulf to the open ocean, has effectively been shut following the US and Israel attack on Iran and Tehran's sweeping retaliation.
However, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi had said that from Tehran's "perspective", the strait is "open". "It is only closed to Iran's enemies, to those who carried out unjust aggression against our country and to their allies.”
Earlier in the day, a second Indian-flagged LPG tanker, Nanda Devi, reached the country after safely sailing from the war-hit Strait of Hormuz. On Monday, the first ship, Shivalik, reached Mundra port in Gujarat.
As of now, 22 Indian vessels remain on the west side and two on the east side of the strait.
Indian authorities are in constant touch with all the relevant stakeholders in the region to secure the safe passage of the remaining ships, officials said.
