CNN —One rescued crew member has died and seven others are still missing after two Japanese military helicopters appeared to have crashed during a drill late Saturday, Japan’s Defense Minister Minoru Kihara said.
“It is very unfortunate that this situation has come to this point,” Kihara told reporters on Sunday.
Kihara said that “there is a high possibility of a collision,” and the flight recorders of the two helicopters were found and recovered from the area.
“What is believed to be part of the aircraft has been confirmed at sea, and the two aircraft are thought to have crashed,” Kihara said.
The SH-60K helicopters are mainly stationed on and operated from destroyers, and the two aircraft were conducting night-time training to search for submarines, according to the JMSDF.
Persons:
Minoru Kihara, ” Kihara, Kihara, Rahm Emanuel, “, Fumio Kishida
Organizations:
CNN, Japan’s, Japan, Self, Defense Force
Locations:
Japan, Izu