Japan Press Weekly

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2016 December 7 - 13 [US FORCES]

Civic group protests against crash of US military aircraft

A citizens’ group on December 8 sent a written demand to U.S. and Japanese authorities concerning the crash of a U.S. military aircraft off Kochi Prefecture on the previous day.

At around 6:00 p.m. on December 7, an F/A-18 Hornet fighter jet stationed at the U.S. Marine Corps Iwakuni Air Station (Yamaguchi Prefecture) crashed off the coast of Kochi. The pilot reportedly escaped from the airplane, but later was confirmed dead. The U.S. military designates the airspace over the Pacific Ocean off Kochi as its flight training zone.

The civic group, consisting of residents of Hiroshima Prefecture which borders Yamaguchi, is opposing the expansion and strength enhancement of the Iwakuni base. In the written request, they pointed out that another F/A-18 deployed to the same base crashed off Kochi 17 years ago. They demanded a thorough investigation into the cause of the latest accident, disclosure of related information, and suspension of flights of the same type aircraft until their safety is ensured.

The organization sent the document to the U.S. President, the commanding officer of the Iwakuni base, the Iwakuni City mayor, and the Hiroshima governor.

Past related article:
> US forces unilaterally resumes Harrier flights without determining cause of crash [October 6 & 7, 2016]