USAF Osprey Crashes Off Coast of Japan

A US Air Force V-22 Osprey based in Japan crashed during a training mission off the southern coast, killing at least one of the 8 aboard.

The cause is unknown, as usual, but will likely end up resulting in the same back-and-forth blame game that previous Osprey crashes result in. The governor of nearby Okinawa, home to many a military serviceman overseas, said that he would be asking the US to suspend all Osprey flights in Japan.

The Japanese Coast Guard first received notice of the crash from a nearby fisherman off Kagoshima. Responding patrol boats found one crewman from teh Osprey, along with metallic debris and an empty inflatable liferaft. Coast Guard chief Kazuo Ogawa said the aircraft dropped off radar a few minutes before his people got the first call, adding that the crew had requested an emergency landing at the Yakushima airport 5 minutes prior.

Local news purveyor NHK said that a Yakushima resident reported seeing the aircraft come down, fairly plausible given the debris field's location about a mile off the coast. They said that the aircraft appeared inverted, with fire coming off one of its engines, followed by an explosion before it fell into the sea.

Only time will tell with additional investigation. Is this just another episode in the long-running saga of Osprey clutch issues?

FMI: www.af.mil/News