A Ground Self-Defense Force helicopter disappeared after taking off from Miyako Island in Okinawa Prefecture. Some doors and parts believed to belong to the aircraft were recovered, according to interviews with Ministry of Defense officials.
Some of them were found far from the point where they disappeared, and the Self- defense forces believe that they may have been swept away by the tide. The Self-defense forces are expanding the search range and rushing to find the members of the crew who were on board the helicopter.