TOKYO (AP) — The Latest on the midair collision of two U.S. warplanes off Japan (all times local):
2:05 p.m.
Japan's Defense Ministry says a second crew member has been found in the waters off the Japanese coast where two U.S. Marine Corps warplanes collided and crashed. Five others are still missing.
The Maritime Self-Defense Force said Thursday that the second person was found about 100 kilometers (60 miles) south of Muroto Cape on Shikoku island in southwestern Japan. The crew's condition is unknown.
The Marines say an F/A-18 fighter jet and a KC-130 refueling aircraft collided and crashed during training around 2 a.m. after the planes took off from their base in Iwakuni, near Hiroshima. The seven crew members included two in the F/A-18 and five in the KC-130. One crew from the fighter jet was rescued in stable condition earlier Thursday.
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9 a.m.
Japanese and U.S. officials say two American warplanes crashed into the Pacific Ocean off Japan's southwestern coast after a midair collision early Thursday, and search and rescue operations are underway.
The U.S. Marine Corps said Thursday an FA-18 fighter and a KC-130 tanker aircraft were involved "a mishap" off the Japanese coast early Thursday. It said in a statement that the accident is under investigation and gave no further details.
Japan's Defense Ministry said the two aircraft carrying seven crew members altogether had collided midair and crashed into the sea about 100 kilometers (60 miles) south of the Muroto cape on the Shikoku main island.
They said Japanese rescuers found one of the crew members in stable condition. Japanese officials said two crew members were on FA-18, and five others on KC-130.
Disclaimer: This is unedited, unformatted feed from the Associated Press (AP) wire.
