NAHA—Even after two decades, Eiichi Ishigaki’s indignation over a U.S. military helicopter crash on a university campus in Okinawa Prefecture has never gone away.

Ishigaki, who was head of the first investigation division of the Okinawa prefectural police department, attempted to determine the cause of the accident, but his efforts were stymied by the Japan-U.S. Status of Forces Agreement. 

SOFA remains a sour point on the 20th anniversary of the crash. Just this year, sex crimes tied to U.S. military personnel have again raised calls to revise the agreement.

Now 76, Ishigaki retired from the force more than 10 years ago but said the problems he faced after the accident remain unresolved.

“Japan cannot investigate in accordance with its own rules, something perfectly normal and reasonable, as the wishes of the U.S. military are given priority,” he said. “Is Japan still under U.S. control? The whole country should recognize this problem.” 

EVEN DIRT WAS REMOVED 

Around 2:15 p.m. on Aug. 13, 2004, a U.S. Marine Corps CH-53D helicopter slammed into the grounds of Okinawa International University in the city of Ginowan. The campus sits next to the U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma. 

Ishigaki, who was in a meeting at the prefectural police department headquarters in Naha, rushed to the scene.

Gray smoke was still rising when he arrived. Parts of the large transport helicopter, including a portion of the rotor, were scattered throughout the residential district surrounding the university.

Ishigaki sought a court warrant for an on-site inspection.

The following day, he called on the U.S. military to agree to a police inspection of the aircraft.

“We should be the ones to carry out the necessary investigation to determine the cause of the accident because the helicopter crashed on civilian land,” Ishigaki said he thought at the time. 

That did not happen. It wasn’t SOFA itself but “the agreed minutes” to the treaty that stood in his way. This document lists Japanese and U.S. officials’ interpretations of SOFA articles.

It says Japanese investigative authorities “will normally not exercise the right of search, seizure, or inspection” regarding U.S. military property, but that exceptions are made when the U.S. military consents to such actions by Japanese authorities.

“I came here to ask for consent in accordance with rules,” Ishigaki told a legal affairs officer of the U.S. military. He remembers pounding the desk several times during the exchange.

The U.S. officer repeated that they needed instructions from their superiors.

Ishigaki was finally informed on Aug. 17 that his request had been rejected.

By that time, the U.S. military had already begun retrieving the helicopter parts. The area around the aircraft was sealed off for about a week after the crash.

When police regained access, the U.S. military had removed everything associated with the accident, down to the topsoil of the crash site.

LAYERS OF ACCESS

The Japanese government maintained SOFA had not been violated despite growing backlash.

Like Ishigaki, critics said the U.S. military had infringed on Japanese sovereignty by rejecting the on-site investigation request on top of blocking the crash site and surrounding areas.

The following year, in 2005, Japan and the United States developed guidelines for handling accidents involving U.S. military aircraft to “improve operations.”

The new guidelines said an “inner cordon,” which would be drawn around a downed aircraft, would be jointly managed by the two countries. However, U.S. consent would be required before Japanese authorities could enter.

Meanwhile, an “outer cordon” formed to control public access would be guarded by Japanese authorities. 

After a U.S. Osprey transport aircraft crashed off the coast of Nago in Okinawa Prefecture in 2016, the Japan Coast Guard was not allowed to enter the inner cordon.

When a U.S. military helicopter crash-landed and caught on fire in Higashi, also in the prefecture, in 2017, prefectural police entered the inner cordon six days later.

Police officers only received a one-hour briefing from the U.S. military and were not able to inspect the aircraft.

The guidelines were revised in 2019 to state that “expeditious early entry will be conducted” into the restricted area inside an inner cordon for Japanese authorities, but U.S. consent remains a prerequisite.

The government has also not taken issue with Japan’s lack of authority to inspect a U.S. military aircraft involved in an accident.

“U.S. military property may have a highly military or sensitive nature,” a government representative has told the Diet. “It is appropriate that the U.S. military, which is thoroughly versed in the matter, primarily handles its own property.”

The Japan-U.S. guidelines say, “The U.S. side will retain control over all wreckage, parts, pieces and debris and will be responsible for ensuring that only qualified personnel are granted access to U.S. classified equipment or material.”

Calls for reviewing SOFA arise whenever an accident involving a U.S. military aircraft or a crime tied to U.S. military personnel occurs.

The government has denied the necessity of revising the treaty and instead chosen to “improve operations.”

Still, a government official questioned the official stance.

“‘Improving operations’ is a deceptive, stopgap measure,” the source said. “Japan’s right to investigate being significantly restricted is an essential issue as a sovereign nation.” 

As for the outcome of the 2004 accident, Okinawa prefectural police referred four U.S. soldiers involved in the crash to prosecutors on suspicion of violating the law concerning acts that endanger aviation.

The Naha District Public Prosecutors Office decided not to indict them as the U.S. military’s jurisdiction takes precedence concerning crimes committed while on duty under SOFA.

(This article was written by Taro Ono and Nen Satomi.)