On that day, the plane was flown by three crew. The 49-year-old captain, Masami Takahama, was a very experienced pilot. He has flown for 12423 hours, with 4842 hours on 747s. The 39-year-old co-pilot, Yutaka Sasaki, was training to be a captain. On that flight, he was seated on the left-seat (which is usually for captains). He has flown 3963 hours, with 2665 hours on 747s. The last crew, 46-years-old flight engineer, Hiroshi Fukuda, has flown 9831 hours, with 3846 hours on 747s. There were also 12 cabin crew.