Sources familiar with the disappearance of a military helicopter in Japan say the helicopter that went missing off the coast of Okinawa was in regular radio contact with air traffic control.
The source added that the helicopter made contact two minutes before it disappeared from radar.
He said radio communications between the Japan Ground Self-Defense Forces UH-60JA multipurpose helicopter carrying ten people did not reveal any unusual phenomena, Japan’s Kyodo news agency reported on Monday. .
Officials from the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force said on Saturday that the helicopter’s automatic distress transmitter was likely disabled when it crashed on Thursday afternoon.
The Japan Ground Self-Defense Force announced on Friday that a lifeboat found in waters south of Japan belonged to a missing military helicopter.
The Japanese Broadcasting Corporation reported that a multi-purpose helicopter disappeared from radar screens near the island of Miyakojima in Okinawa Prefecture with ten people on board, including the commander of the 8th Battalion, Sakamoto Yoichi.
The Ground Self-Defense Forces confirmed on Friday that the lifeboat was part of the equipment aboard the missing helicopter.
Source: dpa