The Okinawa government voted unanimously on Monday for a halt to all F-15 flights until an investigation determines why one of the US Air Force fighters crashed just off the southern Japanese island last month.
The resolution – drafted in response to local outrage after the US military resumed flights last Monday – calls for all F-15 fighter jets to be grounded, even from drills, until the crash can be explained, prefectural (state) assembly representative Yoshinori Hirata said.
The August 21 crash occurred during a training exercise over the Pacific Ocean about 100 kilometres south of Kadena Air Base, a sprawling US base on Okinawa 1 600 kilometres southwest of Tokyo.
The pilot was rescued and the case put under an investigation, but the US military soon after resumed flights following inspections of its F-15s.
The crash was the latest in a string of accidents involving US military aircraft near Okinawa. In April and May, there were five accidents involving US military aircraft, followed by two emergency landings on private properties in August.
Any crimes or accidents involving the US military is a sensitive issue on Okinawa, where nearly half of the
53 000 American military personnel in Japan are stationed.
US military officials were unavailable for comment on Monday due to the US Labour Day holiday. – Sapa-AP