http://www.japantoday.com/jp/news/428968
S Korean plane takes off without permission in Fukuoka
Saturday, February 23, 2008 at 07:16 EST
TOKYO — An Asiana Airlines jet carrying 153 passengers and crew members took off without permission Friday at Fukuoka airport, transport ministry officials said. According to the officials, Flight 131, an Airbus A330 service bound for Seoul, was waiting on the runway but took off without clearance from the airport's control tower at around 12:12 p.m.
Just prior to the South Korean airliner's unauthorized departure, the control tower issued a takeoff authorization for a helicopter from a helipad located on a taxiway, the officials said. The incident did not pose a threat to safety as no other aircraft were on the immediate flight paths of the plane and chopper, the officials said.