TOKYO (AP) — Lack of instructions to crews and their failure to keep a lookout and communicate led to a collision between two Japanese navy helicopters during training, killing all eight people on board, a Japanese navy report said Tuesday.
The two SH-60K reconnaissance helicopters of the Maritime Self-Defense Force crashed in April during a nighttime anti-submarine training exercise near Torishima Island, about 600 kilometers (370 miles) south of Tokyo. They were flying to the same fake target to detect a submarine.
Just before the collision, the two helicopters — while flying in separate locations — were flying toward the same target based on a scenario in which a submarine was detected, the Maritime Staff Office investigation report said. They were under the control of two separate officers on the ship who were giving instructions to the two aircraft, the report said.
The lack of collision avoidance maneuvers on either side indicates that both helicopters misjudged the distance between them, the report said. Then, the nose of the helicopter flying straight ahead collided with the left side of the other, which was turning clockwise at the same altitude, the report said.
It was found that crew members did not look out properly and did not share information. Also, the two commanders did not communicate with their crews and did not give appropriate instructions to the helicopters, for example to fly at different altitudes.
In the report, the MSO states that it is necessary to ensure adequate lookout by crew members, that equipment is modernised, for example by installing a proximity warning system, and that there is adequate communication between responsible officers.
“We take the investigation findings into the accident in which eight people lost their lives seriously and are doing everything we can to take preventive measures, with the determination to prevent further casualties,” said the Minister of Defence Minor Kihara said at a press conference.
Kihara said flight training with multiple SH-60Ks would resume on Tuesday. Helicopter training had been limited to solo flights since the crash.
The crash came as Japan decided to accelerate its military buildup and strengthen its defenses in the southwestern Japanese islands as part of its 2022 security strategy to counter China's increasingly assertive military activities.
Tokyo has rapidly expanded naval exercises and joint drills with the United States and other partners in recent years.
The twin-engine, multi-mission helicopters, developed by Sikorsky and known as Seahawks, were modified in Japan and produced by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. The report said there were no mechanical problems in the accident. Japan has about 70 of them.
