A US military Osprey aircraft, which was carrying eight people, crashed into the sea in western Japan, with the spokesperson from theJapan Coast Guard confirming the death of at least one person.
According to CNN, the Coast Guard received information about the crash around 2:47pm local time (12:47am ET). The spokesperson said that a patrol boat and aircraft were dispatched to the crash area after receiving the information.
Meanwhile, three other people were found in surrounding waters and their conditions are currently unknown, according to a British media outlet.
The Coast Guard said that he saw a wreckage from the tilt-rotor V-22 Osprey and a person who seemed to be non-responsive was found about 3 kilometres from Yakushima island.
AnotherOsprey landed at the island's airport safely today around the time of the crash, said aspokesperson for the local government.
The US forces, who are in the region, are gathering information about the crash, said a spokesperson.
There are about54,000 US troops in Japan with a large number in thesouthern island chain.
As per media reports, witnesses said that the aircraft's leftengine appeared to be on fire as it was descending. Japan also sought an investigation into the crash from the US military.
Osprey is operated by US Marines, the US Navy and Japan Self Defense Forces.
There have been reports that the aircraft is prone to incidents, with the US military and Japan denying the accusations.
In August, another Ospreycrashed off the coast of northern Australia which led to the death of three US Marines.
One of the aircraft was crashed in 2016 in Okinawa, Japan.