TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s air force chief on Thursday confirmed the deaths of two service members whose training aircraft crashed last week.
The T-4 plane with two aboard crashed into a reservoir minutes after takeoff from Komaki Air Base in the central Japanese prefecture of Aichi on May 14.
Air Self-Defense Force Chief of Staff Gen. Hiroaki Uchikura told reporters Thursday that autopsies showed that the two, aged 29 and 31 years, died two minutes after takeoff.
The cause of the crash is under investigation. The air force grounded all remaining 196 of the training planes for emergency inspection.
The crash is the latest in a series of defense aircraft accidents in recent years and comes at a time when Japan is accelerating a military buildup to deter China’s growing influence in the region. Japan has doubled its defense spending, raising concern that funding for weapons may be prioritized over safety.
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