US military aircraft crashes off coast of Japan, reportedly killing one
FOX News' Griff Jenkins provides details on the ongoing search after a U.S. military Osprey crashed, carrying six onboard and killing one, according to Japanese officials. U.S. officials have yet to comment on the incident.
A U.S. military V-22 Osprey aircraft with eight people aboard crashed off the coast of western Japan on Wednesday, the U.S. confirmed Wednesday.
The Japanese Coast Guard said the crash site is off Yakushima Island and patrol boats and aircraft have been deployed to the location for search and rescue efforts. At least one person was killed in the crash, coast guard officials said, according to The Associated Press.
Gray-colored debris believed to belong to the Osprey were located by the Japanese Coast Guard about 0.6 miles off the coast of the island, The AP reported. The report initially said eight people were on board.
While initial reports stated that just six servicemembers were aboard the crash, a spokesman for the U.S. Air Force Special Operations Command confirmed there were eight.
AIR FORCE SPECIAL OPERATIONS COMMAND GROUNDS CV-22 OSPREY AIRCRAFT OVER SAFETY CONCERNS: REPORT
A Japan's coast guard vessel and a helicopter conduct search and rescue operation around the site where a U.S. military Osprey aircraft was believed to crash in the sea off Yakushima Island, Kagoshima prefecture, southern Japan Wednesday, Nov. 29, 2023.
"A United States Air Force CV-22B Osprey from Yokota Air Base, Japan, assigned to the 353rd Special Operations Wing, was involved in an aircraft mishap while performing a routine training mission off the shore of Yakushima Island, Japan with eight Airmen on board. The crew’s conditions are unknown at this time. Emergency personnel are on scene conducting search and rescue operations. The cause of the mishap is currently unknown. Further information will be released as it becomes available," the spokesman told Fox News Digital
Versions of the tilt-rotor plane are operated by the U.S. Air Force, the U.S. Marines, the U.S. Navy and the Japan Self Defense Forces and has the ability to fly like a helicopter and a fixed-wing aircraft.
According to Japanese media, local authorities said witnesses saw the aircraft's left engine on fire as it descended at around 2:47 p.m. local time near the island's airport.
It disappeared from radar shortly before the crash at 2:40 p.m., according to Japan Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno via Reuters.
A wreck believed to belong to the U.S. military aircraft MV-22 Osprey that crashed into the sea off Yakushima Island, Kagoshima prefecture, western Japan Nov. 29, 2023, in this handout photo taken by Japan Coast Guard airplane and provided by Japan Coast Guard. (10th Regional Coast Guard Headquarters - Japan Coast Guard/Handout via REUTERS )
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Though the U.S. military and Japan say the aircraft is safe, its deployment in Japan has been controversial as critics claim it is prone to accidents.
A Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft, operated by the U.S. Marine Corps, flies near Naval Air Facility, Atsugi airbase in Kanagawa, Japan. (Damon Coulter/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Three U.S. Marines were killed in August when an Osprey crashed off the coast of northern Australia during a routine exercise transporting troops.
Another crash-landed in the ocean off Okinawa in December 2016, which prompted a temporary grounding of the aircraft.
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Fox News' Liz Friden contributed to this report
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.