Japanese Defense Minister Kihara Minoru said that two Japanese Navy helicopters crashed into the sea during a training exercise, killing at least one of the eight crew members, four on board each aircraft.
The two SH-60 aircraft were conducting anti-submarine training on Saturday evening near Torishima in the remote Izu Islands group off the southern coast of central Japan when the accident occurred.
The Minister of Defense said in a press conference that investigations are underway to determine the cause of the accident. He added that the black boxes of the two planes were found close to each other, and that the most likely possibility was that the accident resulted from a collision between the two planes.
The Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Forces and Coast Guard forces are conducting a search for the missing seven after one body was found.
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