Osprey Flights in Japan to Be Resumed Thurs. at Earliest

Tokyo, March 13 (Jiji Press)--The U.S. military and the Japanese Ground Self-Defense Force will resume flights of the Osprey tilt-rotor transport aircraft in Japan as early as Thursday, Japan's Defense Ministry said Wednesday. 

Japan and the United States have been suspending Osprey flights since a fatal crash of a U.S. Osprey off the island of Yakushima in the southwestern Japan prefecture of Kagoshima in November last year.

Citing restrictions under U.S. law, the ministry said only that the crash had been caused by parts failure. It noted that the Osprey aircraft had no problems in its design and structure, and that accidents can be prevented by safety measures, such as strengthening inspections and maintenance.

On Wednesday, the ministry notified 11 prefectures, including Tokyo, Aomori, Miyagi, Shizuoka, Yamaguchi, Saga, Kagoshima and Okinawa, and relevant municipalities of the resumption of Osprey flights.

The restart is "totally unacceptable," Okinawa Governor Denny Tamaki told reporters the same day. "It can't be said that the central government has fulfilled its accountability to the public," he argued.

"We're very worried because there has not been enough explanation about the cause of the crash," said Masanori Matsugawa, mayor of the Okinawa city of Ginowan.

Later on Wednesday, Japanese Defense Minister Minoru Kihara and U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin held telephone talks and agreed that their countries will proceed with the resumption of Osprey flights with safety as the top priority.

Speaking to reporters after the phone talks, Kihara said the central government will continue to explain the Osprey crash to local governments as much as possible.

For the time being, the ministry plans to limit GSDF Osprey flights to airspace near airports.

The U.S. military said it will proceed with the resumption of Osprey flights in stages and with care.

In Japan, the U.S. Marine Corps has deployed 24 Ospreys to its Futenma air station in Okinawa. The U.S. Air Force has five Ospreys at the Yokota base in Tokyo, with some of them currently kept at the U.S. military's Iwakui base in Yamaguchi Prefecture, western Japan, according to the ministry.

The U.S. Navy's three Ospreys are temporarily stationed at the U.S. military's Kadena Air Base in Okinawa.

Meanwhile, the GSDF is provisionally deploying 14 Ospreys at its Camp Kisarazu in Chiba Prefecture, with two of them currently based at other locations.
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