Kirk here with another article about the helicopter crash in Okinawa. As I wrote earlier, the connection to Kumamoto is that the helicopter and its crew were based in this prefecture, is the home of the 8th Division (第8師団) of the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force. Wikipedia says that its “responsibility is the defense of the Kagoshima, Kumamoto and Miyazaki prefectures” but I’ve learned from TV reports that it is considered by military planners to be very important to the defense of the islands of Okinawa prefecture (hence, its participation in exercises there).
Here’s a blurb from the article I’m sharing:
“The helicopter was stationed at a key army base in Kumamoto prefecture on Japan’s southern main island of Kyushu, Morishita said Thursday night. One of its 10 crew members is the division commander, Yuichi Sakamoto, who was just promoted to the post at the end of March.”
