Search for crash pilot stepped up

Both aircraft were F-16s

US and Japanese planes have been scouring the Sea of Japan for a pilot missing after a collision between two American fighter planes.

Patrol boats and helicopters were also dispatched to the scene, near the northern Oshima island, Japan's self-defence forces said.

The two F-16 fighter planes, which collided in mid-air at 0900 local time (0000 GMT), were taking part in a military training mission when they crashed.

The two pilots ejected from their aircraft and parachuted into the sea.

One pilot, Colonel Michael J Lepper, was rescued by Japanese coastguard boast earlier in the day.

The US military said in a statement that he was in good condition. They did not release the name of the other pilot.

The F-16s - which were stationed at the US air base in Misawa, northern Japan - were taking part in a joint military exercise with Japanese forces.

The drills are being conducted under new security guidelines, under which Japanese forces can directly support the American military for the first time.

Over 21,000 military personnel and 310 jet aircraft are participating in the 17-day exercise.

Safety questioned

The mayor of Misawa, Shigeyoshi Suzuki, questioned the safety of the flight training.

There have been protests at US military bases in Japan

He called for the US military to assure the safety of future flights, Misawa official Takenori Todate said.

He also accused the US military of not providing full details of the collision.

Misawa houses more than 5,000 US service people and is also used by members of Japan's air defence forces.

There has been longstanding resentment over the presence of the US military in Japan, particularly in the island of Okinawa, where half of the 48,000 US troops in the country are stationed.

In July, thousands staged protests during the G8 summit in Okinawa.

Resentment at the American presence on the island flared up in 1995 ago after three marines raped a 12-year-old schoolgirl.