US fighter jet crashes off Japanese island of Okinawa

Tokyo (CNN)A US Marine Corps pilot ejected safely when his fighter jet crashed into the waters east of the Japanese island of Okinawa, officials said.

The fighter jet, a Marine Corps AV-8 Harrier Jump Jet, departed the Kadena US airbase and crashed 153 km (95 miles) off Hedo Cape, according to a local coast guard official.

The Japanese coast guard deployed rescue teams at 2 p.m. local time (1 a.m ET) and received a report two hours later that at least one person has been pulled from the crash site.

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The pilot ejected and was rescued by a team from the US Air Force, the Marine Expeditionary Force said in a statement.

"The cause of the incident is under investigation," the statement added.

Although the aircraft is a single-pilot plane, the training version has two seats. It's unclear how many people were on board.

Okinawa, Japan's southernmost prefecture, is home to a large US military presence. The US bases are a source of tension with the island's residents, largely due to their cost and safety concerns.

In June, tens of thousands of Okinawans took to the streets of the prefecture's capital, Naha, demanding an end to the country's presence on the island, following the killing of a local woman.