GSDF member killed, another missing as helicopter crashes into home in Saga

All four residents at the home where the fire broke out have been confirmed as safe, investigative source said.

This was all over the news tonight, and glad they are safe, oh the investigative source, was the neighbor next door who confirmed it!

and Im guessing there wont be a peep from Onaga since its a JSDF chopper!?

So are they going to demand a full investigation and request all JAGSDF helicopters be grounded? :-/

The Apache is one of the coolest things flying, but if you get in trouble your odds of survival are slim

The tragic loss of the aircrew's lives aside, this certainly isn't going to help the JGSDF's efforts to deploy the MV-22 to Saga Pref. in the near future.

Get them out of our country! Ban these helicopters! Oh its ours.... Never mind

Somebody needs to demand that there be no more accidents.

"We are confirming whether there are any deaths and damage," Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera said.

Damage?? Who is this fool? Of course there was damage! As for lives lost, I'm sorry about the two servicemen, but relieved for the people on the ground.

A horrible loss of life.

However thank goodness it wasn’t the US Army again.

Military helicopters seem to be malfunctioning at a higher rate than civilian ones.

Just out of curiosity, how much would one of these little toys cost?

Anyone know?

RIP for pilots.

Defense ministry needs to investigate which manufacturer created this heli. Further,

investigate purchase transaction records.

So are they going to demand a full investigation and request all JAGSDF helicopters be grounded? :-/

Yes, that is exactly what is being conducted.

From what I gather for the news reports, the helicopter lost a tail rotor while conducting an inspection flight after maintenance.

The Apache, with its heavy body, and armor plating, would be especially unstable in such a situation.

the crash site was only 4km from base, meaning the helicopter was flying at a low altitude, either immediately after take-off or preparing for landing.

TV news showed a rather large part (the rotor?) that had impaled itself into the soil of a nearby field, along with scattered documents.

the (pixelated) documents in the news looked like maintenance records. Perhaps the pilot knew a crash was unavoidable and intentionally discarded the maintenance log to save it.

wtfjapan: "and Im guessing there wont be a peep from Onaga since its a JSDF chopper!?"

Exactly. In fact, not one of the people who claim they want the US Ospreys grounded or the US out because they pose a danger to the public will make a peep on this. In fact, some are already suggesting it was everyone else's fault. Hell, they'll probably still find a way to blame the US for this.

All reports so far suggest UT was a functional check flight gone wrong. Very wrong.

Military helicopters seem to be malfunctioning at a higher rate than civilian ones.

That's because military helicopters are used much more frequently in much harsher conditions than civilian ones. You put 100k miles on your daily driven car, it's going to break down sooner than the one you only drive on weekends.

Hell, they'll probably still find a way to blame the US for this.

I was actually surprised no one had already blamed it on being a US designed Apache.

Defense ministry needs to investigate which manufacturer created this heli. Further,

investigate purchase transaction records.

Why? It's a tragic malfunction, not a government conspiracy. Apaches aren't dropping out of the sky. The only thing they need to investigate is the maintenance records.

Whose crazy and out of control now? Ground the fleet no less?

Pilots will normally do everything possible to avoid crashing into a residential area, and this was a small town ina rural region, so either something instant and devastating happened on that aircraft or the pilots made extremely bad decisions.

R.I.P. pilots.

Stop flying those freaking things over residential area!

Why does Japan need the Apache attack helicopter? It is designed to kill tanks and people. Do they expect North Korean or Chinese tanks and troops to be roaming the Kanto plain? I think not. Money would be better spent on feeding/housing/educating and caring for Japanese citizens.

Why does Japan need the Apache attack helicopter? It is designed to kill tanks and people. Do they expect North Korean or Chinese tanks and troops to be roaming the Kanto plain? I think not. Money would be better spent on feeding/housing/educating and caring for Japanese citizens.

Better to have it and not need it, than to need it and not have it.

We live in a world where we need to be prepared for anything. Sticking your head in the sand and ignoring it, doesn't make it go away.

For the price of these tools of war, the Japanese could provide themselves with a better, more productive, enjoyable life (food, housing, education, better roads, cheaper train travel, more meaningful English learning, more smoke-free restaurants, etc.)

Yes, all brought to you by the People's Republic of China.

@BeerDeliveryGuy

Quite naturally those measures would be taken, only difference in this particular instance is their are no politicians who are making appearances with media in tow and “distraught “ mothers or random people claiming how “dangerous “ the incident was.

Cause of the accident seems bad maintenance.  AH-64D helicopter (JSDF) is very old one but has not made such an accident for a long time.

Japan, please be smart, make and use your own quality helicopters. Don't buy the junk from US military. Corporations in US pay big kickbacks to Pentagon to get huge profitable military contracts and totally don't care about quality, they only see dollar signs. Remember several years ago in Time Magazine or in Newsweek was printed about how Pentagon buys hammers that cost $10 paying for them $200? Why? Because the buyer and seller can nicely split the $190 difference to finance their very lavish style of life.

Don't buy the junk from US military.

16 different countries operating the Apache helicopter would beg to differ with your assessment. Overpaying for a hammer has zero relevance to the quality of a piece of technology.

But its no surprise that this turned from discussing a tragedy to criticizing the US as usual.

Dear extanker: a big number of countries is not an indicator of intelligence. Multiple countries have the right to make poor judgements. Overpaying for the hammers or any other things in order to get kickbacks it is a crime! Criminals have no morals. Do you really expect criminals to try to create quality? That is why I would like to advise Japan and anybody else to avoid future tragedies. Criticizing is actually very patriotic. Closing your eyes on problems is not.

The Apache was developed during the height of the Cold War. A period not exactly known for stingy military funding. The hardware developed during that era is usually always of superior quality and performance.

(F-15, M1 Abrams, B-2 Lancer, A-10, etc)

None of this “multi role” and “integration” jack-of-all-trades-master-of-none that military equipment is designed for these days. Machines were built for one purpose and performed it excellently.

I am surprised to see this news, as usually it is only about American helicopters making emergency landings.

So this was probably a hand-me-down model with tons of hours (Iraq, Afghanistan) that stressed the airframe and mechanicals. How much was Japan forced to pay for these refurbished tank-killers? How would Chinese tanks make their way to Japan? China has no sealift capacity. Or is the JSDF covertly operating in Iraq/Afghanistan?

Off your knees, Japan!

So this was probably a hand-me-down model with tons of hours (Iraq, Afghanistan) that stressed the airframe and mechanicals. How much was Japan forced to pay for these refurbished tank-killers? How would Chinese tanks make their way to Japan? China has no sealift capacity. Or is the JSDF covertly operating in Iraq/Afghanistan?

How about you do just an ounce of research before running off with your conspiracy narrative? JGSDF Apaches are manufactured under license in Japan by Fuji Heavy Industries.

It doesn't matter that Fuji builds these death dealers. Still noone has explained need for a tank-killing chopper on land-locked Japan.

Off your knees, Japan!

P.S. Revoke the SOFA agreement!

land-locked Japan.

First, I don't think 'land-locked' means what you think it means.

Still noone has explained need for a tank-killing chopper on land-locked Japan.

Second, like I said earlier, it would help you greatly to do some research before speaking. Your earlier comment that China does not have a heavy sea-lift capability is not quite correct. They don't have a dedicated military heavy sea-lift capability, however, all civilian cargo, ferry and heavy lift ships are mandated by the Chinese government to be able to move military equipment at a time of war.

Why do you think China has a fleet of heavy lift hovercraft? To amphibiously assault themselves? If China wants to get their tanks somewhere, they absolutely have the ability.

But ultimately, in real life, you prepare for what might happen, not what you hope will happen. Pray for peace, prepare for war. It's called reality.

P.S. Revoke the SOFA agreement!

If Japan ever decides to ask the US to leave, which it is free to do at any time according to the mutual security treaty, then it will be. Otherwise, sorry, it doesn't work that way.

Off your knees, Japan!

Japan isn't on it's knees, it's just smart enough to know that it isn't quite strong enough to stand on its own.