US Marines begin controversial Ospreys test flights over Japan

The US Marines conducted their first test flights of the MV-22 Osprey aircraft in Japan on Friday despite strong local opposition on its safety. The Ospreys took off from the US Marine Corps' Iwakuni Air Station in Yamaguchi Prefecture, western Japan, as about 70 protestors gathered near the base with carrying banners saying they opposed the Osprey deployment and test flights. On Wednesday, the Japanese government declared the controversial MV-22 Osprey transport plane safe, giving Washington green light for test flights at the Iwakuni base before starting full operations in October at the Marine Corps' Futemma Air Station in the southern Japanese prefecture of Okinawa. Up to 12 Ospreys arrived at the Iwakuni base in July before being transferred to Okinawa, but the planes had been on the ground as the two governments agreed that Ospreys should not be tested before their safety is ensured, amid concern over the safety of the aircraft following a series of recent deadly accidents. Ospreys, which can take off like a helicopter and fly like a plane, crashed during a military drills in Morocco in April and in the US state of Florida in June. The two governments have confirmed that the two accidents were caused by human factors and not by the aircrafts' systemic problems or by technical problems. Chief Cabinet Secretary Osamu Fujimura said at a press conference on Friday that the government will continue seeking support from local leaders in Okinawa for the deployment, adding that Defense Minister Satoshi Morimoto will visit Okinawa next week. Under the agreement reached on Wednesday by the Japan-US Joint Committee, Osprey will fly no lower than 150 meters above ground, and flights to be avoided over nuclear facilities, historic sites and congested areas. They also agreed that flight patterns around US military facilities should be designed to avoid air space over hospitals and schools. In addition, Osprey's vertical take-off and landing mode will be limited to air space over US facilities and areas. About 75 percent of all US military facilities in the country are also located in Okinawa, some 1,500 km south of Tokyo, with a population of around 1.4 million. Earlier this month, tens of thousands of people rallied in Okinawa against the planned Osprey deployment.