Eight people were rescued on Wednesday after a U.S. Navy plane crashed into the Pacific Ocean near Japan, The Hill reports. According to the Navy, the plane was carrying a total of 11 people, and rescue crews have so far managed to rescue eight of them.
The Navy transporter plane crashed in the ocean southeast of Okinawa as it was heading to the U.S.S. Ronald Reagan aircraft carrier in the Philippine Sea, where it was operating as part of a military exercise with Japan’s Maritime Self-Defense Force, the U.S. Navy’s 7th Fleet said in a statement. The Navy added that an investigation into the incident would be conducted. President Donald Trump commented the situation Wednesday morning, tweeting that the administration is “monitoring the situation.”
“The U.S. Navy is conducting search and rescue following aircraft crash. We are monitoring the situation. Prayers for all involved,” Trump tweeted.
The crash is the fifth in a string of accidents involving the 7th Fleet since January. The accidents include two deadly collisions involving guided missile destroyers that left 17 U.S. sailors dead. Due to these developments, the head of the 7th Fleet, Vice Admiral Joseph Aucoin, was relieved of duty in August, The Hill adds.
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