U.S. Osprey Makes Emergency Landing on Kagoshima Isle Again

August 15, 2018

Tokyo- A U.S. MV-22 Osprey tilt-rotor transporter made an emergency landing on Amami Oshima in Kagoshima Prefecture on Tuesday, the fourth such incident on the southwestern Japan island since June 2017.

The landing, made at Amami Airport, did not injure anyone but affected some commercial flights, according to Japanese Defense Ministry officials.

The Osprey, which is believed to be based at the Marine Corps' Futenma air station in neighboring Okinawa Prefecture, made the landing around 5:20 p.m. (8:20 a.m. GMT) after a warning light began flashing inside the cockpit.

As the safety was confirmed, the aircraft took off about two hours later, leaving behind some of its crew, the officials said.

Another Osprey arrived at the airport around 8 p.m. and left there after picking up the remaining crew members.

In June this year, two CV-22 Ospreys of the U.S. Air Force made an emergency landing at the same airport. One of them stayed there for a month for engine repair and maintenance work.

Sources including the ministry's Okinawa Defense Bureau said a different Osprey landed at the U.S. Air Force's Kadena base in Okinawa around 5:50 p.m. Tuesday, followed by another one around 6:30 p.m.

Both left the base around 6:50 p.m. The bureau has asked the U.S. military whether the planes landed in emergency procedures and where the planes are based, according to the sources. Jiji Press