Jumbo jet nearly hits Tokyo Tower

A chartered jumbo jet barely missed hitting Tokyo Tower after straying off course last month, Japan's Transport Ministry has revealed.

On the morning of Sept. 19, the Thai Orient Airways flight circled central and southern Tokyo at heights as low as 1,380 feet, coming within a mere 650 feet of the 1,090-foot-tall television transmission tower, the Mainichi Shimbun reported Monday.

After receiving permission to land at Haneda Airport, the jet circled Tokyo for seven minutes, during which time it had no radio contact with the airport control tower, the report said.

The plane eventually landed without incident, but the ministry questioned air traffic controllers about it. Thai Orient Airways also decided to punish the flight captain and said it would retrain the crew.

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