The Okinawa Prefectural Government urged U.S. military forces in the prefecture Tuesday to investigate recent incidents involving its aircraft and prevent recurrences, according to local government officials.
The prefecture sent a written request to the U.S. Marine Corps in Okinawa concerning the emergency landing Friday of a helicopter from the Futenma Air Station in Ginowan. It landed on the shore about 50 meters from homes in the village of Ginoza.
The statement says the incident could have developed into a serious accident threatening human lives.
Ryoko Arakaki of the governor's office visited the U.S. Marine Corps headquarters in the village of Kitanakagusuku to submit the request.
"The residents of Okinawa are very anxious," he said afterward. "We made a strong request for safety control."
The local government also requested measures to prevent a recurrence of the kind of incident off Kume Island late last month in which a helicopter from the U.S. Navy's Atsugi base in Kanagawa Prefecture told a local fishing boat to leave the area because it was conducting drills there.
The chopper crew made hand gestures to the fishermen to leave the area, which was not included in training zones set by the U.S. military on July 22, 24 and 25, according to an official of the municipal office of Kume.