No evidence of reported SDF chopper crash found in Oita Pref.

OITA, Japan (Kyodo) — Firefighters in Oita Prefecture received a report Friday that a Self-Defense Forces helicopter had crashed, but after conducting a search the government of the southwestern Japan prefecture found no evidence of an accident.

The Joint Staff Office also said it has confirmed the status of all SDF aircraft and has received no reports of an accident.

An eyewitness said a grayish aircraft circled to the right before disappearing in Hita, according to the prefecture, which added that a U.S. Navy C-130 transport plane of that color was flying nearby at the time.

Since there was no reported accident involving C-130 aircraft, it has been determined the eyewitness was apparently mistaken, the local government said.

The local fire department received the emergency call from the resident at around 11:50 a.m. and began investigating along with police.