Japan Presumes Global Hawk Drone Crashed After Vanishing Off Coast

Japan's Air Self-Defense Force lost contact with one of its three Global Hawk surveillance drones on Tuesday, September 15, 2026, and officials presume the aircraft crashed into the Sea of Japan after debris was spotted in the search area. The unmanned RQ-4B drone, valued at approximately 17 billion yen (about £81 million), disappeared from radar at approximately 12:58 p.m. local time while flying about 50 kilometers north of Tottori Prefecture on Japan's northwestern coast. The aircraft took off from Misawa Air Base in Aomori Prefecture at about 10:20 a.m. and began experiencing communications problems after 12:55 p.m. before vanishing from radar. A fighter jet and a Japan Coast Guard patrol ship were dispatched to the area. Later on Tuesday, crews reported floating objects and oil on the sea surface. After reviewing photographs of the debris, the Air Self-Defense Force said it believed the Global Hawk had crashed shortly after disappearing from radar. The coast guard reported spotting what appeared to be part of the drone, though officials said they could not yet confirm the debris was from the missing aircraft.