During training, two Japanese naval helicopters crash in the Pacific Ocean, leaving one person dead and seven others missing

According to the defense minister, during nighttime training, two Japanese naval helicopters carrying eight crew members crashed in the Pacific Ocean south of Tokyo, perhaps resulting in a collision. One crew member died and seven others were reported missing, with rescuers still looking for them on Sunday.

 

Defense Minister Minoru Kihara told reporters that the two SH-60K helicopters from the Maritime Self-Defense Force, each carrying four crew members, lost communication late on Saturday near Torishima island, some 600 kilometers (370 miles) south of Tokyo.

Although the exact reason of the disaster was unknown at the time, Kihara said that authorities thought it was “highly likely” that the two helicopters collided before going into the ocean.

Adm. Ryo Sakai, the chief of staff of the navy, said that training with SH-60s would be discontinued until the reason of the accident is identified and preventative measures are put in place.

According to Kihara, the recovery of a flight data recorder, a blade, and pieces thought to be from both helicopters in the same vicinity by the rescuers indicates that the two SH-60Ks were flying next to one another.

Twelve warships and seven planes were sent into the missing crew’s search and rescue area on Sunday. The mission also included surveillance boats and aircraft from the Japan Coast Guard.

Rahm Emanuel, the American ambassador to Japan, offered his nation’s assistance in the search and rescue.

“We will unite, standing next to our friend and ally, Japan. During this difficult moment, my thoughts are with the crew members, their families, and friends,” he said on the social media site X.

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries adapted and manufactured the Sikorsky-developed Seahawks, twin-engine, multi-mission helicopters, in Japan. According to Kihara, they were receiving anti-submarine training at night. One lost touch at 10:38 p.m. and, a minute later, sent out an automated emergency alert.

Since the helicopters’ signals share the same frequency and are indistinguishable, Kihara said that the only distress signal received was an emergency locator transmitter, another indication that the aircraft were in the vicinity.

One helicopter belonged to an air base in the prefecture of Tokushima, while the other to an air base in Nagasaki. According to Kihara, the pilot of a third aircraft that took part in the training on Saturday was being questioned by officials.

The SH-60K is primarily used for anti-submarine warfare aboard destroyers, although it may also be employed for other tasks including search and rescue. There are perhaps 70 of the modified helicopters in Japan.

Defense authorities said that the training on Saturday was limited to the Japanese navy and was not a component of an international exercise.

In order to offset threats from China’s more aggressive military activity, Japan has been speeding its military development and strengthening deterrence in the southwestern Japanese islands in the Pacific and East China Sea, as per its 2022 security plan. Japan has recently carried out joint drills with the United States, an ally, and other countries in addition to its own major naval exercises.

According to the chief of staff of the Japanese navy, the training on Saturday was a component of regular exercises involving warships, submarines, and Seahawk helicopters. In order to detect submarines, a group of helicopters hovers together as they drop sonars into the ocean for training.

Three crew members perished in 2017 when a human mistake caused the previous model SH-60J Seahawk of the Japanese navy to crash during midnight training. A small accident occurred in July 2021 between two SH-60s off the southern island of Amamioshima, resulting in blade damage to both aircraft but no casualties.

The navy implemented a series of precautionary measures to guarantee adequate spacing between aircraft after the incident in 2021. Sakai said that if proper observance of all safety precautions had been taken, Saturday’s collision may have been avoided.

According to the Navy, mechanical failure from undetected damage during maintenance was the cause of the tragic crash of an MH-60S Seahawk that occurred in the United States in 2021 while training off the coast of California.

The Japanese disaster also occurs one year after a Ground Self-Defense Force UH-60 Blackhawk fell off the southwest island of Miyako, killing all ten crew members as a result of an engine output issue called as “rollback.”

When the incident occurred on Saturday, there were no local weather warnings in effect, according to Japan’s national broadcaster NHK.