CHINAEUROPE AFRICAASIA 中文双语Français
World\Asia-Pacific

US military to resume Osprey flights in Japan following accident

Xinhua | Updated: 2016-12-19 13:49

TOKYO - The US military in Japan will resume use of its Osprey planes Monday afternoon, less than a week since a major accident occurred in the south, reported local media Monday morning.

A US Marine Corps MV-22 Osprey aircraft belonging to the Futenma base in the city of Ginowan made a water crash-landing off southern Okinawa prefecture on Dec 13, injuring two of the five crew members aboard.

Following the accident, Japan asked the US military to suspend its Osprey flights in Okinawa until the cause of the accident is known and safety is ensured.

The US military said the aircraft has no problem.

"We are highly confident in our assessment that the cause of the mishap was due solely to the aircraft's rotor blades coming into contact with the refueling line," US Forces and Japan Commander Lt. Gen Jerry Martinez was quoted as saying by Kyodo News.

Worried about safety, local people, however, want the US aircrafts to keep grounded.

Okinawa Governor Takeshi Onaga called the Japanese government's approval of the flight resumption "outrageous," and the local government has urged the central government to forbid the resumption of Osprey flight operations, according to Kyodo.

The Japanese and US governments have been seeking to move the Futenma base from Ginowan to the less-populated Henoko coastal area of Nago.

The people of Okinawa, however, have been demanding the Futenma base to be relocated outside the prefecture.

BACK TO THE TOP
Copyright 1995 - . All rights reserved. The content (including but not limited to text, photo, multimedia information, etc) published in this site belongs to China Daily Information Co (CDIC). Without written authorization from CDIC, such content shall not be republished or used in any form. Note: Browsers with 1024*768 or higher resolution are suggested for this site.
License for publishing multimedia online 0108263

Registration Number: 130349
FOLLOW US