TOKYO – An American military helicopter made an emergency landing on abeach in Okinawa Saturday, an official said, the latest in a series ofaccidents which have fuelled local opposition to US forces on the Japaneseisland.
There were no immediate reports of injuries from the landing in Uruma, alocal fire department official said.Footage aired by public broadcaster NHK showed the UH-1 helicopter, whichappeared intact, surrounded by US servicemen and Japanese police on thesandy beach.
Immediate comment from the US military was not available.
Last month, a window from a US military helicopter fell onto a schoolsports ground near the Futenma marine air base in Okinawa, but no one wasinjured.
The incident also comes just two months after an American military chopperburst into flames after landing in an empty field on the island.
Such accidents have sparked opposition to the US bases on the strategicisland, which would serve as a launchpad for any American military activityin Asia.
A series of crimes including rapes, assaults, hit-and-run and drink-drivingaccidents by US personnel have also triggered protests on Okinawa, and area frequent irritant in relations between close security allies Japan andthe United States.
More than half the 47,000 American troops in Japan under a decades-longsecurity alliance are stationed on Okinawa, the site of a major World WarII battle that was followed by a 27-year US occupation of the island.