INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
A United States military aircraft with eight people onboard crashed into the sea in western Japan on Wednesday with fishermen reporting
three people had been found but that their condition was unknown.The coast guard said it had sent patrol boats and aircraft to the area
where the tilt-rotor V-22 Osprey crashed off the island of Yakushima.Fishing boats in the area found three people in the surrounding waters,
a representative of a local fisheries cooperative said.The crash occurred near the island&s airport, where another Osprey successfully
landed on Wednesday afternoon, a spokesperson for the prefectural government said.United States forces in the region were still gathering
information, a spokesperson said.The crash happened just before 3 pm Japan time with witnesses saying the aircraft&s left engine appeared to
be on fire as it descended, media reported.The aircraft disappeared from radar at 2.40 pm local time, Japan Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu
Matsuno said.The plane, which can fly both like a helicopter and fixed-wing aircraft, is operated by the United States Marines, United
States Navy and the Japan Self Defense Forces.The deployment of the Osprey in Japan has been controversial, with critics saying it is prone
The United States military and Japan say it is safe.In August, a United States Osprey crashed off the coast of northern Australia while
transporting troops during a routine military exercise, killing three United States Marines.Another crash-landed in the ocean off Japan&s
southern island of Okinawa in December 2016, prompting a temporary United States military grounding of the aircraft
The post US military aircraft crashes in sea off Japan, condition of crew unknown first appeared on Ariana News.
