The U.S. forces on Friday lifted a worldwide flight ban on its Osprey military aircraft, which had been grounded after a deadly crash off a southwestern Japan island in November, but stopped short of giving details on the cause of the accident.
The U.S. Naval Air Systems Command said in a press release that it is "issuing a flight clearance" for the tilt-rotor aircraft, saying the decision was based on "a meticulous and data-driven approach prioritizing the safety of our aircrews."
Tokyo and Washington are coordinating the exact schedule for the resumption of flights by Ospreys deployed in Japan, including those of the Japanese Self-Defense Forces, the Japanese Defense Ministry and the U.S. Forces Japan said in a separate joint press release.
Maintenance and procedural changes were made to address a "materiel failure" that allow for a safe return to flight, the U.S. command said.
Ministry officials told reporters in Tokyo that while the cause of the accident has been "identified," it cannot be made public as the investigation by U.S. forces is ongoing. No structural defect was found and there is no need to change the aircraft's design, they added.
Defense Minister Minoru Kihara issued a statement, saying that Japan has received "extremely detailed information from the U.S. side about the accident and its cause and safety measures."
Kihara also said that his ministry has confirmed that Ospreys in Japan are now "able to resume their operations safely" and pledged to explain beforehand to local governments about the resumption of flights.
The crash of a U.S. Air Force CV-22 transport plane into the sea near Yakushima Island in Kagoshima Prefecture on Nov. 29 during a drill, killing all eight crew members on board, was the deadliest involving Ospreys since their combat debut in 2007, renewing concerns over their safety in Japan.
Kihara said in January that U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin had instructed U.S. forces and relevant departments not to operate Ospreys in Japan without coordinating with the Japanese government in advance.
In Japan, a close U.S. security ally, the U.S. military has stationed MV-22s, used by the U.S. Marine Corps, at Marine Corps Air Station Futenma in Okinawa Prefecture, and CV-22s, used by the U.S. Air Force, at Yokota Air Base in the western suburbs of Tokyo.
Japan's Ground Self-Defense Force also has a fleet of 14 V-22 Ospreys that has been grounded since the November incident. The ministry aims to relocate the fleet from its current temporary deployment site in Kisarazu, near Tokyo, to Saga in southwestern Japan by 2025.
Ospreys are capable of taking off and landing like a helicopter but cruising like a plane.
Related coverage:
U.S. to resume Osprey flights months after deadly crash off Japan
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