Blackhawk UH-60 JA lost in Okinawa

[jolihokistix]

Brief mention on the BBC, but top news in Japan for the last few days. Senior military brass including a Division Commander on board. Sudden disappearance from radar within 2 minutes of conversing with ATC, liferaft found still folded, no emergency beacon activated. Conspiracy theorists are asking if it could have been shot down by a Chinese ship, but there is no evidence of that. Floating bits include a cockpit door, a section of rotor blade, half a fuel tank and today a crew helmet. Local fishermen say the winds in this season can change suddenly from a gentle southerly to a fierce northly blast.

Japan's missing military helicopter likely crashed into sea - BBC News (https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-65209753)

Body reportedly seen in waters following GSDF chopper disappearance - Japan Today (https://japantoday.com/category/national/update1-body-reportedly-seen-in-waters-following-gsdf-chopper-disappearance)

Missing SDF helicopter had normal radio communications before vanishing - Japan Today (https://japantoday.com/category/national/missing-sdf-chopper-had-normal-radio-communications-before-vanishing)

[212man]

Local fishermen say the winds in this season can change suddenly from a gentle southerly to a fierce northly blast.

II think it’s safe to say that, whatever happened, it was nothing to do with the wind!

[jolihokistix]

Just presenting the background here for those who may not have come across the news yet.

The sea is around 100 meters deep there and will need specialist divers if/when the wreckage is found.

[jolihokistix]

Japan dismisses speculation of China link to SDF chopper accident - Japan Today (https://japantoday.com/category/national/japan-dismisses-speculation-of-china-link-to-sdf-chopper-accident)

Much speculation in the absence of any further debris. It was heard and observed and filmed by people on the island shortly before going off radar. Local surfers' stories agree on observations of surface cavitation ("I thought it might have been a whale") and rising black smoke'.

You do have to wonder if the limited release of information has been handled correctly. The translation of "We have no indication of any Chinese military involvement" sounds weird, quote: "We have not confirmed moves by the Chinese military related to" (the apparent crash).

Even "Such and such a ship with specialized XYZ locating/lifting capability is expected to reach the area on Xday" might keep the theorists quieter.

[jolihokistix]

After a week.
Not strictly official yet, as they are still deep diving and double-checking, but the news services are now full of what they think has been found, very sadly. The main fuselage and some of those on board, about 100 meters down.
Several bodies from missing SDF chopper likely found, source says | The Japan Times (https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2023/04/14/national/missing-helicopter-portion-found/)

[jolihokistix]

Well, if you insist, the only update is that there was some kind of equipment failure yesterday meaning they could not dive.

Today the sea was rough and the winds were too strong, so the next window will be tomorrow. They want the three visible personnel, the flight recorders and other crucial pieces of evidence, but the frame of the helicopter itself will be later raised by a specialist outside contractor.

[jolihokistix]

Maybe this might be a good time to stop the updates.

Today they managed to get the saturation divers down there (106 meters) and confirm five bodies, two of which they brought to the surface and identified. A salvage ship is ready to start an attempt to lift the fuselage tomorrow. Video news in Japanese.
陸自ヘリ事故　隊員5人と機体胴体を確認　伊良部島の北6キロ、水深106メートルの海底で（TBS NEWS DIG Powered by JNN） - Yahoo!ニュース (https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/685694b30a5477478c3254fc0af1fae5f491888f)

[jolihokistix]

Today’s news mentions two more brought to the surface, for a total of four. The fifth should be brought up today, while they continue the search for the remaining five of the ten original members on board. Meanwhile a large survey ship called the 平洋 Heiyō has moved into place to scan the sea bed with sonar.

https://ja.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%B9%B3%E6%B4%8B%E5%9E%8B%E6%B8%AC%E9%87%8F%E8%88%B9

[jolihokistix]

According to NHK today, bidding for the job of lifting the wreckage will start on April the 21st, and salvage work will not start before the end of this month.

(The Beeb lifted the wreckage days ago...)

[jolihokistix]

The wreckage is in a delicate and fragile state and lies 106 meters down on the edge of an undersea cliff, which falls off to 200 meters. The Kuroshio Black Stream passes close by, meaning the surface and seabed currents are strong around there and can work in opposite directions. The salvage company will be given until the 30th of June to complete the work of lifting her, with ropes, hooks and nets.
(Gleaned from J news sources)

[jolihokistix]

There was a special discussion in the Japanese Diet building on the 18th of April, and the questions flew. Incredibly, it seems that a whole slew of potential problems with this mission are coming to light.

First and foremost is that this was an army helicopter, not designed to be flown over water. It carried no flotation device beneath it, and the flight recorder was not designed for a water accident, i.e. to break away, float to the surface and activate a beacon. The recorders were fixed inside the fuselage. GSDF helicopters in Japan deliberately avoid flying over bodies of water such as Tokyo Bay. In fact the long flight from Kyushu down to the new base being set up on Miyako Island was in itself possibly against regulations.

The mental state of the pilot is also under scrutiny. The helicopter was packed with top officers from the GSDF 8th Division, on a mission to (not exactly specified?) scout out the coastline of the nearby islands. Was he experienced in flying around there, did he feel stressed over water, and even more so with so many senior staff on board? Finally why, many journalists are asking, was the party confined to one helicopter? Splitting the group would surely have halved any risks, and also might have enabled one to spot the other in the event of an accident, to witness and mark where it might have gone down.

Longish article in Japanese below. My precis above.
陸上自衛隊のヘリは海上を飛ばない…沖縄・ヘリ事故のパイロットはいつもの精神状態ではなかったのか（デイリー新潮 ） - Yahoo!ニュース (https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/eb86a49dae7060a0bd1e01374af06708767dd464?page=1)

[[email protected]]

Starting to sound like the Mull accident.........

[jolihokistix]

The salvage vessel arrived over the site today, April the 28th, hoping to start the lifting process tomorrow. The fuselage looks to be in three parts, the cockpit, the passenger cabin and the tail section, and there are various other objects scattered around. There is some talk of evidence of a strong side impact. Five of the 10 on board have been found and identified so far.

[jolihokistix]

Quick outline update in English.
(News sources can be supplied if requested but they will be in Japanese, with photos, illustrations etc. *See below)

Yesterday the sea was too rough to attempt any work, but they started early this morning, the 1st of May. The plan is to lay a net on the ocean floor, then lift the sections with cables and place them onto the net to be wrapped and lifted. Possible problems include the sea bed itself, filled with jagged rocky protuberances.

*E.G. Some visuals here illustrating the proposed lifting method (simplified), the sea bed, the currents and the darkness down there.
水深106m“損壊した陸自ヘリ”…ネットで包み引き揚げへ（テレビ朝日系（ANN）） - Yahoo!ニュース (https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/f1cb8e212e137552fdb6c55e4aaf741a2bcf000f)

[sandiego89]

........First and foremost is that this was an army helicopter, not designed to be flown over water. It carried no flotation device beneath it, and the flight recorder was not designed for a water accident, i.e. to break away, float to the surface and activate a beacon. The recorders were fixed inside the fuselage. GSDF helicopters in Japan deliberately avoid flying over bodies of water such as Tokyo Bay. In fact the long flight from Kyushu down to the new base being set up on Miyako Island was in itself possibly against regulations.......



I would have thought that being an island nation, Japanese helo operators, even Army ones, would have some experience near bodies of water. Wonder this is policy is more of a turf battle between Army and Navy? Some other "army" operators routinely fly over significant bodies of water without flotation bags or breakaway flight recorder (perhaps they mean EPIRB, which indeed is useful.

[jolihokistix]

Yes, EPIRB.
Yesterday they found a sixth body which they have lifted.
Today they are using a robot submersible to place the fuselage sections onto the lifting net, processes 1,2 & 3 in this illustration. If the weather holds, they say there is a possibility the whole job can be done today.
陸自ヘリ、きょう引き揚げへ　無人潜水機の作業開始　沖縄の宮古島沖 (朝日新聞デジタル) - Yahoo!ニュース (https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/f5717cb194a7b62574388443189b1821690cb280/images/000)


https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune.org-vbulletin/1170x1274/img_0367_cca6ad61518db575b3e382fc2af18a91ddd833a1.jpeg

[jolihokistix]

And some photos of what they have now pulled up. The article comment is how nearly total the wreckage is.
陸自ヘリ 原形とどめず激しく損傷 - Yahoo!ニュース (https://news.yahoo.co.jp/pickup/6462027)

Video clip of the first lift
陸自ヘリ、機体の一部を引き揚げ　事故原因の解明目指す | 毎日新聞 (mainichi.jp) (https://mainichi.jp/articles/20230502/k00/00m/040/032000c?inb=ys)

[jolihokistix]

Article in English here which will disappear in due course.
https://japantoday.com/category/national/part-of-japan-sdf-helicopter-wreckage-recovered-from-seabed

[jolihokistix]

The FDR/CVR has been recovered. It is being reported that it will take 'several months' for the data to be fully analysed/analyzed. It still attached, and relatively undamaged.

From the state of the wreckage there are early estimations that they must have hit the ocean surface at about 200 kph.