5 bodies found underwater in search for missing U.S. Osprey crew: Japanese media

TOKYO, Dec. 4 (Xinhua) -- In search of the U.S. military Osprey aircraft that crashed last week in waters off southwestern Japan, the bodies of five missing crew members may have been located underwater, according to local media outlets.

The five bodies, along with multiple pieces of wreckage from the Osprey, were found in waters off the country's southwestern island of Yakushima on Monday morning during an underground search conducted by the U.S. Navy and Japan's Maritime Self-Defence Force, Japanese newspaper Asahi Shimbun reported citing government officials.

Divers have also found what appears to be the main part of the tilt-rotor aircraft, national news agency Kyodo reported.

The U.S. Osprey military transport aircraft based in Japan, with eight people on board, crashed on Wednesday. One unconscious person was found in the sea and later confirmed dead.

The U.S. Air Force said that the CV-22 tilt-rotor transport aircraft was involved in a "mishap" while carrying out routine training.

Following the accident, Japan announced that it would suspend its own Osprey flights while urging the United States to confirm the safety of its Osprey military aircraft.