A small airplane of Japan's Air Self-Defense Force carrying four crew members crashed into a mountain in northwestern Niigata prefecture on Thursday, military officials said. All four aboard the aircraft were located at the crash site in Niigata prefecture, about 300 kilometers northwest of Tokyo, and transported to hospital, but their condition was unknown. The MU-2 plane, which is used for rescue operations, left Niigata airport on a training mission at 1:30 p.m. (0403 GMT) the agency said. The cause of the crash wasn't immediately known. Weather in the area was reported clear at the time of the accident.
