MSDF chopper in crash that left eight dead found on seabed

The main section of one of the pair of Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force patrol helicopters that collided and crashed off a remote Tokyo island in April has been found on the seabed in the area where the accident occurred, sources familiar with the matter said Saturday.

It was discovered by the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology's Deep Tow unmanned deep-sea survey probe during a search mission ordered by the Defense Ministry.

According to the sources, the unmanned probe found what appeared to be a helicopter on the seabed, and the number on the apparent helicopter matched that of the crashed aircraft. An object believed to be the body of the other helicopter was found nearby, and work is underway to confirm its details.

On the night of April 20, two SH-60K patrol helicopters, during training to search for a submarine, collided in the air and crashed at a point some 280 kilometers east of Torishima in Tokyo's Izu island chain in the Pacific. The accident left all eight crew members dead.

Earlier this month, the MSDF released an investigation report saying that the accident was caused by insufficient lookout by members of the crew and the aircraft's inadequate altitude control.

While flight recorders and some other aircraft parts had been recovered, the main parts of the helicopters had remained undiscovered.

The ministry asked JAMSTEC to search for the crashed helicopters as the area of the accident site is as deep as about 5,500 meters. Earlier this month, the MSDF released an investigation report saying that the accident was caused by insufficient lookout by members of the crew and the aircraft's inadequate altitude control.

Authorities aim to quickly deduce whether the discovered object belonged to the other crashed helicopter, investigate the topography of the seabed in detail and carefully examine whether it would be possible to salvage the aircraft.