Imagine looking out your window during a routine landing and seeing nothing but water. No runway. No tarmac. Just the cold, grey expanse of the San Francisco Bay rushing up to meet the fuselage. That is exactly what happened on November 22, 1968. Most people think of the "Miracle on the Hudson" when they hear about water landings, but Japan Airlines Flight 2 did it decades earlier, and they did it with a massive Douglas DC-8.
It was a total fluke.
Captain Kohei Aso was at the controls of the "Shiga," a sleek four-engine jet carrying 96 passengers and 11 crew members from Tokyo. The flight was supposed to be a standard transpacific hop ending at San Francisco International Airport (SFO). Instead, it became one of the most bizarre and arguably successful "accidents" in aviation history. Why? Because despite the plane ending up in the drink, not a single person was killed. Not even a serious injury.
What Really Happened With Japan Airlines Flight 2
Fog. It always comes back to the fog in San Francisco.
The weather that morning was thick. Soup. Captain Aso was using an Instrument Landing System (ILS) approach, which basically means the plane follows a radio beam down to the runway. But something went sideways. Aso, a veteran pilot with roughly 10,000 hours of flight time, somehow misread his instruments or relied too heavily on a faulty reading. He thought he was much higher than he actually was.
He lowered the gear. He set the flaps. He prepared for the "thud" of the runway.
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Instead of rubber hitting concrete, the plane hit water. It splashed down about two and a half miles short of the runway, right near the San Mateo-Hayward Bridge. You’d think a massive jet hitting water would break apart like a toy, but the DC-8 is a tank of an airplane. It stayed intact. It didn't even sink right away. It just bobbed there in the shallow waters of the bay, sitting on the muddy floor in about seven feet of water.
The Aso Defense: A Lesson in Honesty
If you study aviation safety, you’ve heard of the "Aso Defense." It’s legendary. Usually, when a pilot messes up, there’s a lot of talk about "mechanical interference" or "conflicting data." Not Aso. When the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) asked him why he landed in the bay, he didn't mince words.
"As you Americans say, I fucked up."
Actually, the official transcript is slightly more polite, but the sentiment was the same: "I made a mistake." He took full responsibility. In a world of corporate hedging and legal maneuvering, his blunt honesty was so refreshing it actually became a case study in human factors and cockpit culture. He didn't blame the fog. He didn't blame the plane. He just admitted he lost situational awareness.
Why the Shiga Didn't Sink
Luck played a huge role here. The San Francisco Bay is notoriously shallow in certain spots. Had they hit the deep Pacific, the Shiga would have been a tomb. Instead, the plane settled onto a soft mud bank. The water reached just below the cabin floor.
The evacuation was surprisingly calm.
Passengers didn't even have to use the inflatable slides in the traditional way. They basically stepped out onto the wings and waited for the Coast Guard and police boats to pick them up. Some people didn't even get their feet wet. It’s wild to think about—a 150,000-pound jet sitting in the mud like a giant, metallic duck.
- The Depth: 7 feet of water.
- The Outcome: Zero fatalities.
- The Rescue: Quick response from nearby boats.
- The Plane: Remarkably, it wasn't a total loss.
The Resurrection of the Shiga
This is the part of the Japan Airlines Flight 2 story that most people find hard to believe. Usually, when a commercial jet lands in saltwater, it’s headed straight for the scrap heap. Saltwater is corrosive poison for aluminum and electronics. But Japan Airlines (JAL) wasn't ready to give up on a multi-million dollar aircraft.
They hauled the plane out of the mud.
They literally lifted the DC-8, washed it down with massive amounts of fresh water to get the salt off, and transported it back to a hangar. It took about half a million dollars—which was a lot of money in 1968—and several months of intensive labor, but they fixed it. They replaced the engines, the wiring, and the interior.
The plane actually went back into service.
It flew for JAL for many more years, and then it was sold to other carriers. It eventually flew as a freighter for companies like Airborne Express. It lived a full, long life long after it was "supposed" to be at the bottom of the bay. If you flew on a DC-8 cargo plane in the 80s or 90s, there’s a non-zero chance you were on the famous "water-walker."
Lessons for Modern Travelers
So, what does a 1968 ditching tell us today?
First, it proves that the "brace position" and following crew instructions actually work. The reason everyone survived Japan Airlines Flight 2 wasn't just the shallow water; it was the fact that the cabin stayed pressurized and the crew didn't panic. Even in the age of Boeing 787s and Airbus A350s, the fundamentals of water egress haven't changed much.
Second, it highlights the importance of the "Human Factor." Modern planes are almost entirely automated, but the pilot's "mental model" of where the plane is remains the final fail-safe. Aso’s mistake was a classic "CFIT" (Controlled Flight Into Terrain) incident, except the "terrain" happened to be liquid.
How to Stay Safe on Overwater Flights
Honestly, flying is safer now than it has ever been. But if you’re a nervous flier, keep these real-world tips in mind based on the Flight 2 incident:
- Count the rows to the exit. In Flight 2, visibility was low. If the cabin had filled with smoke or flipped, knowing exactly how many seats are between you and the door is the difference between getting out and getting stuck.
- Keep your shoes on during takeoff and landing. If you have to walk out onto a wing or through debris, you don't want to be barefoot.
- Listen to the briefing. Yeah, it’s boring. But knowing where that life vest is (and specifically how to pull the tabs) matters. On Flight 2, people had time to prepare, but you won't always have that luxury.
The Legacy of Captain Aso
Captain Aso was demoted, obviously. He didn't fly as a Captain for a long time after that. But because of his extreme honesty and the fact that he saved everyone on board by at least keeping the plane level during the impact, he wasn't cast out of the industry entirely. He eventually returned to the cockpit, though mostly in a non-command capacity for a while.
His legacy is one of "Just Culture." This is a concept in aviation where pilots are encouraged to report mistakes without fear of immediate, career-ending retribution, provided they weren't being negligent or criminal. By admitting his fault, Aso helped the industry understand how a veteran pilot could still lose track of the ground.
Today, the spot where the Shiga landed is just another part of the bay, quiet and unremarkable. But for those 107 people on board, it was the site of a genuine miracle—one built on a foundation of pilot error, a sturdy airframe, and a very lucky mudbank.
Actionable Takeaways for Aviation Enthusiasts
If you want to dive deeper into this specific era of aviation or understand the mechanics of what went wrong, here is what you should do next:
- Research the DC-8 "Short-Coupled" Design: Understanding the aerodynamics of the DC-8 helps explain why it was so resilient during the water impact compared to modern, more composite-heavy planes.
- Visit the SFO Museum: Located at San Francisco International Airport, they often have archives and exhibits on the history of transpacific flight, including JAL’s early operations.
- Study the NTSB Report: Search for the official 1969 NTSB accident report on Japan Airlines Co., Ltd., DC-8-62, JA8032. It is a masterclass in technical writing and provides the exact breakdown of the altimeter settings and radio chatter from that morning.
- Look up the Tail Number: Follow the history of JA8032. Tracking its journey from a submerged wreck to a functional cargo plane is a fascinating rabbit hole for anyone interested in aircraft maintenance and restoration.