3 soldiers die in a shell explosion inside a tank gun turret during army drill in Japan
TOKYO (AP) – A shell exploded inside a tank during an exercise at the Japanese army training area in southern Japan on Tuesday, killing three soldiers and wounding another, officials said.
The fatal explosion occurred while three soldiers – a tank commander, a gunner and a security guard – were inside the gun turret of a Type 10 main battle tank during a live-fire exercise with two other tanks at the Hijudai Training Area in the southern prefecture of Oita.
The driver, the tank’s fourth occupant, survived but was injured, authorities said.
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Masayoshi Arai, chief of staff of Japan’s Ground Self-Defense Force, said the military has suspended live-fire exercises with Type 10 and Type 90 tanks, which use the same rounds, while authorities investigate the cause and other details of the crash.
“We will immediately determine the cause so that we can take preventive measures,” Arai said.
The Type 10 is Japan’s newest tank, which it began deploying in 2011.
