Japan Self-Defense Force plane crashes during training

It was confirmed that two personnel from the Japan Air Self-Defense Force were on board the plane.

The Japanese Ministry of Defense said that at around 3 p.m. this afternoon (May 14, local time), a T4 training aircraft carrying two Air Self-Defense Force personnel "disappeared" from radar while flying near Inuyama City shortly after taking off from the Air Self-Defense Force's Komaki Base in Aichi Prefecture and heading to Nyutabaru Base in Miyazaki Prefecture.

The plane was later confirmed to have crashed into an agricultural reservoir in Inuyama City, Aichi Prefecture.

The area where the plane crashed is an agricultural reservoir in Aichi Prefecture. Photo: NHK

Currently, Japanese authorities including the Police Force, firefighters and Self-Defense Forces are conducting rescue operations and assessing the specific situation related to the accident.

According to staff at a hotel on the shore of Lake Iruka, many people around the scene of the accident “heard a loud bang, followed by the sound of police cars passing by,” but most of them did not know what had happened. Many witnesses in the nearby Inuyama Post Office area also said, “they heard a very loud bang, like thunder, despite the fine weather.” Afterwards, these people “heard the sound of police cars and fire trucks passing by” and judged that an accident might have occurred.

According to local authorities where the accident occurred, there was no damage to tourists or buildings at the scene, although there were many guests inside nearby tourist facilities at the time of the accident.

Meanwhile, speaking at a press conference this afternoon, Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Hayashi Yoshimasa said that the Japanese Government has grasped information related to the accident. However, he also emphasized that detailed information about the accident, including the purpose of the flight as well as the number of people on board at the time of the accident..., is currently being confirmed and clarified by the Ministry of Defense.

The crashed aircraft was a T4 of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force. Photo: NHK

The Japan Air Self-Defense Force's T4 trainer is typically used for pilot training and has a crew of two. It is a twin-engine aircraft that can fly about 1,300 km without refueling.

In recent years, there have been more accidents involving Japan Self-Defense Force aircraft. Specifically, in April last year, two SH-60 patrol helicopters of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force collided and crashed during night training off the coast of Torishima, Izu Islands, killing eight crew members.

Also during this period, a UH-60 helicopter of the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force crashed off the coast of Miyakojima, Okinawa Prefecture, killing 10 crew members. In January 2022, an F-15 fighter jet of the Air Self-Defense Force also crashed into the Sea of ​​Japan off the coast of Ishikawa Prefecture, killing two crew members.

Previously, in April 2019, an Air Self-Defense Force F-35 fighter jet crashed off the coast of Aomori Prefecture, killing one pilot; in February 2018, another Ground Self-Defense Force helicopter crashed into a residential area in Saga Prefecture, killing two.

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