WASHINGTON, November 29. /TASS/. Eight airmen were onboard the Osprey aircraft that crashed off the coast of Japan, the US Air Force said in a statement.
The aircraft was involved in a mishap "while performing a routine training mission off the shore of Yakushima Island, Japan with eight airmen on board," according to the statement.
"The crew’s conditions are unknown at this time," the statement said. "The cause of the mishap is currently unknown."
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Japan will ask the US for information about the Osprey accident, and a decision on whether to suspend flights of these aircraft in the country will be made after all the details are examined. The governor of Okinawa Prefecture, which hosts most of the US military sites in Japan, previously demanded suspension of such flights until the causes of the accident were determined.