It has emerged that the US government leaked information to an American newspaper that improper repair work was carried out on an aircraft, suggesting it was the presumable cause of the 1985 crash of a Japan Airlines jet. The data was released after the US sensed reluctance on the part of the Japanese authorities to release the data, reports Kyodo News.
On August 12, 1985 Flight 123 bound for Osaka crashed into a mountain in Gunma Prefecture about 40 minutes after taking off from Tokyo, killing 520 passengers and crew members. Four female passengers survived.
Japan's Aircraft Accident Investigation Commission (AAIC) report stated that the accident was caused by the aircraft’s rear bulkhead being torn by a rapid influx of decompressed air, causing the vertical fin to explode and disabling all hydraulic systems.