Crew members inspect a U.S. Navy MH-60R Seahawk helicopter that landed on the beach in Chigasaki, a bayfront city south of Tokyo, Oct. 10, 2024. (Akifumi Ishikawa/Stars and Stripes)
CHIGASAKI, Japan — A U.S. Navy helicopter resumed its flight four hours after making a “precautionary landing” Thursday on a beach about 30 miles southwest of Tokyo.
The MH-60R Seahawk, assigned to Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron 51 at Naval Air Facility Atsugi, landed safely on the beach along Sagami Bay in Chigasaki city at 11:06 a.m., base spokesman Gregory Mitchell told Stars and Stripes. It departed at 3:01 p.m.
The helicopter, with three crew members on board, landed out of precaution, Mitchell said by phone Thursday. He did not disclose what prompted the landing.
“The cause of the precautionary landing is currently under investigation, and we regret any disturbances the landing may have caused,” he said in a follow-up email to Stars and Stripes.
Scores of onlookers and dozens of police officers, firefighters and reporters clustered near the helicopter that afternoon.
The Seahawk landed without issue, and there were no injuries, damage to the aircraft, or any other issues, Mitchell said. The Navy will continue to work with local authorities to address and investigate the incident, he added.
The Chigasaki Fire Department dispatched first responders after receiving word of the landing at 12:15 p.m., a department spokesperson said by phone.
Japan’s South Kanto Defense Bureau was unable to immediately provide additional information Thursday.
A spokesperson for the city told Stars and Stripes it received no information regarding the landing’s cause.
