2 U.S. fighter planes land in Okinawa after collision

"Two U.S. Air Force fighter planes collided above the sea off Okinawa on Monday, forcing them to make an emergency landing at Kadena base, local officials said.

Nobody was injured in the accident, however, it has stirred sharp protests from local communities as it came less than two months after a helicopter belonging to the U.S. Marine Corps crashed into a university in Ginowan, Okinawa Prefecture, on Aug. 13.

"I'm infuriated with the fact that another accident occurred while the cause of the helicopter crash (in August) is yet to be clarified. Prefectural residents' anger and distrust have reached the highest possible level," Okinawa Gov. Keiichi Inamine told reporters.

At around 2:45 p.m., two F-15s based at a U.S. Air Force base in Alaska collided during a training exercise above the sea off Okinawa Prefecture, according to U.S. forces in Japan. The virtical fin of one of the aircraft and the left main wing and the left horizontal fin of the other were partially damaged.

One of the aircraft made an emergency landing at Kadena base at around 3 p.m., accompanied by another F-15, and the other managed to come back to the base five minutes later. "

Article 1:
Mainichi Interactive: 2 U.S. fighter planes land in Okinawa after collision

Article 2:
The Japan Times: U.S. fighters brush in mid-air; no one hurt

just goes to show how tough the F-15 is. I remember a story of an Isreali F-15 in the 80's landing when it had lost an entire wing

The F-15 may be tough, be people on the ground are not.

This is a good reason to not have air force bases near big cities, there is an extra danger of killing people.

Originally posted by ArMaP
The F-15 may be tough, be people on the ground are not.

This is a good reason to not have air force bases near big cities, there is an extra danger of killing people.

This was a major issue when I was there 10 years ago. All of Okinawa is basically a city except for the northern end of the island. The bases there are like little patches of the US surrounded by cities that start literally right outside the perimeter road outside the fence.