Plane flies upside down after co-pilot error

Japan’s transport ministry Wednesday said a plane narrowly avoided disaster when it plunged over the Pacific around 10:50 p.m. on Sept. 6, almost turning upside down, a news report said.

The All Nippon Airways (ANA) flight, with 117 passengers and crew on board, dived 1,900 meters in 30 seconds in the incident off the southern Shizuoka district, according to AFP.

The manoeuvre happened when the co-pilot, in trying to unlock the cockpit door for the captain who was returning from the toilet, mistook a command button for the cockpit door lock switch nearby, the report said.

The plane took off from Naha on Okinawa island and managed to touch down at Tokyo's Haneda airport safely. No casualties were reported.

Images from the flight recorder on the Boeing 737-700 showed the plane veered to the right and then sharply to the left, before dropping backwards, AFP said.

The aircraft tipped more than 130 degrees to the left at one point, but the darkness outside meant many of those on board did not realize the craft had almost flipped over, it said.

A senior ANA official apologized to travelers. "We are deeply sorry for causing anxiety to our passengers."