Topics September – November 1998 2 September –– Swiss Air MD11 en route tional Airport in Ho Chi Minh City, southern 27 September –– DC10 Aircraft of Japan to Geneva from New York crashed into Vietnam Airlines en route from Sendai to Hawaii hit Atlantic off coast of Nova Scotia, Canada, turbulence over Pacific injuring 11 passen- killing all 229 passengers and crew on board 19 September –– Inaugural flight of gers Skymark Airlines Boeing 767-300 between 2 September –– Last four wagons of freight Haneda and Fukuoka as first new airline to 29 September –– Lion Airlines Antonov car- train belonging to The Burlington Northern enter Japan’s newly deregulated domestic rying 54 crew and passengers destined for Santa Fe Railway derailed en route to Los market in 35 years. Fare of ¥13,700 (50% Colombo lost immediately after take-off from Angeles causing explosion and fire but no lower than recommended fare) achieved by Jaffna Airport, northern Sri Lanka injuries hiring foreign pilots and offering simpler in- flight services 6 October –– JR East celebrated 1 billion 3 September –– Maintenance wagon col- passengers carried on three shinkansen lided with ballast-spreading train on out- 23 September –– JR East and Shiki Theat- over 16 years of operation. Tohoku bound track of Aioi–Okayama section of rical Company inaugurated performing arts Shinkansen carried approximately 656 mil- Sanyo Shinkansen delaying 18 shinkansen complex in Hamamatsu-cho, Tokyo, as first lion passengers, Joetsu Shinkansen 335 trains including Nozomi by up to 50 minutes permanent theatre owned by JR East million, and Nagano Shinkansen 9 million 8 September –– Four vehicles, including two 25 September –– JR East reopened 6 October –– JR East announced plans to passenger buses carrying 98 Catholic pil- Kuroiso-Shirakawa section of Tohoku Line automate ticket gates at all stations on grims, collided with overturned fuel truck on closed for 29 days due to torrential rains in Tohoku, Joetsu and Nagano shinkansen as arterial road in Araras, southeast Brazil, area at end of August that caused exten- well as at Akita and Yamagata stations by bursting into flames and killing 53 people sive damage at 47 locations along line May 1999 11 September –– Boeing 747-400 aircraft 25 September –– Prototype shinkansen 8 October –– Pleasure boat sank on Lake of Taiwan’s China Airlines hit severe turbu- cars built by JR East and JR West to be Banyoles near Barcelona, northeast Spain, lence over Pacific west of Hawaii injuring kept permanently at JR Railway Technical drowning 20 and injuring 44 11 passengers Research Institute. Front cars of STAR21 developed by JR East and of WIN350 de- 9 October –– JR East began experiments 11 September –– Nangoku Kotsu bus com- veloped by JR West to be maintained at using German-made red and white cross- pany operating in Kagoshima City, south Wind Tunnel Technical Center in Maibara, ing barriers in comparison to domestic Japan, started operating women-only last Shiga Prefecture yellow and black barriers at three locations, bus on every Friday departing Nishi including Uchibo Line in Chiba Prefecture Kagoshima Station at 22:17 to allow female 26 September –– Japan’s oldest Class 6 passengers to take late bus home without electric locomotive built in 1920 and still op- 10 October –– The Akita Inland Traverse risk of annoyance by drunk male passen- erational, hauled freight train on Mikuni Railway serving Akita Prefecture, Japan, gers Ashiwara Line of Keifuku Electric Railway, marked 10th anniversary by issuing ¥10 Fukui Prefecture, to celebrate 70th anniver- tickets compared to normal fare of ¥1620. 12 September –– Boeing B767 aircraft of sary of line Line inaugurated in April 1989 by taking over Vietnam Air overran Tan Son Nhut Interna- former JNR line External and interior scenes of the JR East Art Center/Shiki Theaters near Hamamatsucho, Tokyo (JR East) 54 Japan Railway & Transport Review 19 • March 1999 Copyright © 1999 EJRCF. All rights reserved. 12 October –– JR East held groundbreaking 31 October –– Fairy Queen steam locomo- ceremony for Heart Itsuhashi care facility for tive manufactured in England in 1855 elderly to be constructed adjacent to JR returned to active service carrying tourists Sendai Hospital. Construction to be com- twice monthly between New Delhi and Alwar, pleted in late June 2000 at total cost of ¥12 India. Locomotive preserved since 1971 in billion National Rail Museum 15 October –– JR East Planning and 18 November –– Keihin Electric Express Kokuyo (office equipment manufacturer) Railway Co., Ltd. opened new Haneda Sta- opened offices equipped with computers at tion linking terminal building at Tokyo’s Yaesu Exit of Tokyo Station Haneda Airport to central Tokyo. Construc- tion in progress since 1993 at total cost of 15 October –– Plenary session of Japan’s ¥50 billion Upper House approved disbandment on 22 RTRI Experimental free-gauge train passing gauge- October of JNR Settlement Corporation 24 November –– Jiro Kawasaki, Japan’s changing section on experimental track in Kokubunji, Tokyo (RTRI) established 10 years ago to dispose of Minister of Transport, submitted 1998 Trans- former JNR debts. Remaining work to be port White Paper to Cabinet. Report sheds taken over by Japan Railway Construction light on promoting transition from private 30 November –– Test run of free-gauge train Public Corporation, and government to take cars to railways, and barrier-free public held by Railway Technical Research Insti- over majority of long-term debt (¥27.7 transport concept for elderly and disabled tute at Kokubunji, Tokyo. Free-gauge train trillion) and reduce interest burden by able to run on both shinkansen and narrow- advanced redemption of interest-bearing 25 November –– JR Kyushu announced gauge lines by automatically changing wheel debt abandonment of plan to construct new gauge on gauge-changing section between Fukuoka head office building scheduled for standard and narrow-gauge sections. Fur- 15 October –– Fuji Kyuko Co., operating completion in spring 2001. Instead, will ther 100 km/h tests scheduled between train services around base of Mt. Fuji, Ja- rebuild head office in front of Hakata Sta- Yonago and Yasuki on Sanin Line, and high- pan, began test run of two trains allowing tion at budget of ¥5 billion speed tests at 250 km/h planned on Pueblo carriage of bicycles by passengers to ease test track in USA from April 1999 road traffic congestion around scenic areas 26 November –– Saitama Prefectural and save energy Police conducted drill at JR East Omiya Works for handling train derailment. First Milestones 15 October –– 7.2-km Line 14 (also called time train (to be scrapped) actually over- Météor) of Paris Metro opened from turned in police-sponsored drill Madeleine to Bibliothèk Nationale. Six-car Eiki Inukai unmanned EMUs with rubber-tyred wheels 27 November –– Tama Monorail (5.5 km) Executive Vice President of Nagoya Rail- run at maximum speed of 80 km/h linking Kamikitadai (Higashi-Yamato City) road Co., Ltd. and Chairman of Meitetsu and Tachikawakita (Tachikawa City) opened. Kanko Service Co., Ltd., died on 22 June 18 October –– Passenger train derailed in Monorail connects with JR Chuo Line at aged 68. He joined Nagoya Railroad in 1953 suburbs of Alexandria, Egypt, colliding with Tachikawakita and with Seibu Haijima Line and was appointed a Director in 1975 and commercial area near station killing 46 train at Tamagawa Josui. Southern half of mono- Executive Vice President in 1992 passengers and injuring 101 rail, spanning 10.61 km between Tachikawakita and Tama Centre scheduled Norihiko Nomizo 23 October –– JR East completed test run to open in fiscal 1999 Vice President of Tokyu Tourist Corp., be- of new Series 500 commuter train for local came President of Tokyu Corporation on 27 Chuo and Sobu lines. Width increased by 27 November –– Passenger shot bus driver October. He Joined Tokyu Corporation af- 15 cm to alleviate rush-hour crowding. Ten in Seattle, Washington, USA. Out-of- ter graduating from Musashi Institute of trainsets (100 units) to start operation in late control bus crashed through barrier onto Technology and became a Director in 1995 December road 15 meters below, killing two passen- gers and driver. Perpetrator committed sui- 28 October –– Air China Boeing B737 air- cide by shooting himself craft with 104 passengers and crew flying from Beijing to Kunming hijacked by pilot and landed at Chusei International Airport, Taipei Copyright © 1999 EJRCF. All rights reserved. Japan Railway & Transport Review 19 • March 1999 55.