Japan Press Weekly

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2020 January 29 - February 4 [US FORCES]

Object from US military aircraft falls on farmland during parachute drills on Okinawan island

During U.S. military parachute drills on January 29 on Ie Island in Okinawa, an object from an airplane accidentally landed on a local farmer’s field outside the training area. No property damage was reported.

According to the U.S. military, the object landed about 200-300 meters away from a gate of a U.S. military base where the parachute drills were conducted. Receiving this report, village government officials immediately rushed to the site, but the fallen object was already collected before their arrival.

The U.S. refuses to disclose details or even basic information regarding the object in question, such as its size and weight.

For the residents of the island, the latest incident was just another one in a long list of accidents related to parachuting drills. It was sometimes an object and other times a jumper that missed the designated landing area and landed outside the base. Commenting on the most recent accident, Japanese Communist Party member of the Ie Village Assembly Naka Minoru said, “The village has long called on the U.S. military to stop holding parachute drills as they pose a risk to residents. Accidents will keep recurring as long as the military training exercises take place. The U.S. should accept our reasonable demand.”

Past related articles:
> US military aircraft drops 4 drum cans [April 19, 2014]
> Discarded US marine’s parachute falls from the sky in Okinawa [March 28, 2014]