MV-22 Ospreys with the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit train over Okinawa, Jan. 15, 2025. (Trevor BishopWilliams/U.S. Marin)

A Marine Corps Osprey accidentally dropped a load of rations weighing nearly 1,000 pounds into the ocean west of Okinawa during training last week.

An aircraft assigned to an unspecified squadron with the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit was conducting routine parachute operations Thursday when it dropped a cargo pallet containing pre-packaged Meals, Ready to Eat off Ie Shima, unit spokesman Maj. Edward Pingel wrote in an email Tuesday.

The island is a few miles northwest of Okinawa’s Motobu peninsula.

A spokesman for the Okinawa Defense Bureau, an arm of Japan’s Defense Ministry, identified the aircraft as an MV-22 Osprey.

No injuries or damage were reported, and the Marine Corps notified nearby mariners to “prevent any potential interference or danger from the displaced cargo,” Pingel said.

“Due to an unexpected shift in wind conditions, the pallet was blown off course and into the water instead of landing on Ie Shima [Auxiliary Airfield] as intended,” he said.

“This incident is very regrettable because it caused anxiety and affected the local community,” Defense Minister Gen Nakatani said at a news conference Tuesday. “We strongly urged the U.S. side for thorough prevention of recurrences and to take all possible measures for safety management.”

Marines on Friday searched for the pallet — a 4 ½-foot cube weighing between 880 and 990 pounds — but were unable to find it and called off the search that day, a spokesman with Okinawa’s Military Base Affairs Division said by phone Tuesday.

“We think that it is necessary to file some kind of request to the Okinawa Defense Bureau and the U.S. military because the weight of this cargo is very dangerous,” the spokesman said. “We are still considering it.”

A similar incident occurred at the airfield on April 17, 2014, when an unspecified U.S. military aircraft dropped four 55-gallon drums of water outside the fence line but within the base’s boundaries, he added.

Some Japanese officials may speak to the press only on condition of anonymity.

The Marine Corps and Air Force use the airfield for training. In February, the Marines will begin work to reinforce the runway, with completion expected between June and September, Marine Corps Installations Pacific told Stars and Stripes in October.

“Safety of military personnel and civilians is our number one priority and all personnel involved have undergone the requisite training and have conducted rigorous planning to mitigate risk,” Pingel said.