ASDF Has Successfully Evacuated The Bodies Of Two F-15 Fighter Jet Pilots That Crashed Into The Sea Of Japan Last Month

Illustration of a Japanese F-15 fighter jet. (Wikimedia Commons/Toshi Aoki - JP Spotters)

JAKARTA - Japan's Air Self-Defense Force (ASDF) announced that it had recovered the bodies of two pilots who were aboard an F-15 fighter plane that crashed in the Sea of Japan in late January.

One body was found last Friday and another on Sunday in waters near the crash site, about 5 kilometers northwest of Komatsu Air Base in Ishikawa Prefecture, central Japan, according to the ASDF.

Quoting Kyodo News on February 14, the bodies of the two pilots were identified as ASDF Colonel Koji Tanaka (52 years) and Captain Ryusei Ueta (33 years).

After Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force (MSDF) divers found the bodies, MSDF ships transported them separately to base.

Previously, the MSDF, ASDF and local units of the Japan Coast Guard had carried out search and rescue operations in the vicinity of the crash site on January 31. The crash occurred shortly after takeoff at 5:30 p.m. local time, as the plane was en route to training with three other fighter jets.

The pilots belong to a tactical combat training group based at the base, of which Colonel Tanaka is the top group commander. They were in a two-seater plane, with Tanaka in the front and Ueta in the back.

They are considered highly skilled, as the mission of the group is to instruct combat units in the art of flying while playing the role of a potential enemy.

To note, as reported by The Japan Times, so far, several parts of the aircraft have been found, including the engine exhaust duct, fuel pipe, and vertical tail fin bearing the aircraft number.