Search begins for US Marine officers after 2 planes crashed mid-air into the sea

A search team is now on the look out for five U.S Marine officers who have been declared missing after two Marine Corps aircrafts collided in mid-air and crashed into the sea off the coast of Japan.

According to Japanese and American officials, the incident happened during an air-to-air refueling exercise on Thursday.

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Authorities say two person have been found thus far, with one said to be in a stable condition at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, while the second had been found about 10 hours after the collision.

Search-and-rescue efforts for the remaining five continued, Japan’s highest-ranking military officer said.

“We plan to keep at it all through the night,” Katsutoshi Kawano, chief of the Japanese Self-Defence Forces’ Joint Staff, told a news conference.

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