**KARACHI, Pakistan**
Several bodies were found in the wreckage of two Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force (MSDF) patrol helicopters recovered from the Pacific Ocean that collided in April 2024, the MSDF said Wednesday.
Work is ongoing to identify the bodies, it said, without providing a specific number of bodies recovered, Tokyo-based Kyodo News reported.
Eight personnel were on board the two SH-60K helicopters that crashed during a night drill. Only one body had been recovered prior to the salvage operation.
One chopper was salvaged late Tuesday and the other early Wednesday.
The aircraft were recovered from the seabed at a depth of around 5,500 meters (18,044 feet).
The helicopters collided on April 20 last year during a submarine detection exercise over waters east of Torishima Island in the Izu Island chain, about 600 kilometers (372 miles) south of Tokyo.
In an investigative report released in July 2024, the MSDF indicated that a misjudgment of the distance between the two helicopters may have occurred.
The MSDF signed a $10 million contract with the US Navy to recover the aircraft.
[Anadolu Agency website contains only a portion of the news stories offered to subscribers in the AA News Broadcasting System (HAS), and in summarized form. **Please contact us for subscription options.**](https://www.aa.com.tr/en/p/subscription/1001)