US aircraft crashes in the Pacific Ocean off Japan 

  • The aircraft, which has not been identified, was carrying 11 people during flight
  • It crashed into the Philippine Sea off the southeast of Okinawa in the Pacific 
  • The names of the passengers and crew are being withheld as family are notified 

A US Navy aircraft with 11 people on board has crashed into the Pacific Ocean near Japan. 

It crashed into the Philippine Sea off the southeast of Okinawa while flying to the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan. 

‘A United States Navy aircraft carrying 11 crew and passengers crashed into the ocean southeast of Okinawa,’ a statement from the Navy said.

It crashed into the Philippine Sea off the southeast of Okinawa while flying to the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan (shown above in a file image)

‘Personnel recovery is under way and their condition will be evaluated by USS Ronald Reagan medical staff.’  

The crew of the Ronald Reagan is conducting a search and rescue mission for those on board the aircraft. 

It is not know what kind of aircraft it was or what might have caused the crash, which occurred at about 2.45pm Japan time.

The names of the passengers and crew are being withheld as family are notified.    

The US military has a heavy presence in the western Pacific, with tens of thousands of troops and hundreds of pieces of hardware stationed in Japan and South Korea.

The USS Ronald Reagan last week was one of three American aircraft carriers that held rare joint drills in the region, joined separately by Japanese navy and South Korean warships over the weekend.

The drills come as tensions persist between Washington and North Korea over its missile and nuclear program.

US military vessels have been involved in a number of accidents in recent months in East Asia.

The USS John S. McCain collided with a tanker off Singapore in August, killing 10 sailors and injuring five others.

Two months earlier in June, the USS Fitzgerald and a cargo ship smashed into each other off Japan, leaving seven sailors dead.

There were also two more, lesser-known incidents. In January USS Antietam ran aground near its base in Japan, and in May, USS Lake Champlain collided with a South Korean fishing vessel.  

More to follow…

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