CAMP FOSTER, Okinawa — Two airmen were killed in a motorcycle wreck on a main Okinawa highway Monday night, according to the 18th Air Wing at Kadena Air Base.
Both were riding on the same motorcycle when it collided with a Japanese motorcyclist around 8:30 p.m. at the intersection of routes 58 and 23 near the front gate of the air base, the Air Force said.
The passenger died on the scene, and the driver was treated at a hospital but died about three hours later, officials said. The Air Force said it was withholding the names of the airmen until their next of kin were notified.
The Japanese driver survived the wreck and was taken to a local hospital with back injuries, according to Okinawa prefecture police.
“Every member of the Kadena community is affected by this tragedy,” said Brig. Gen. Matt Molloy, 18th Wing commander. “It is with a profoundly heavy heart that we express our deepest condolences and sympathies to the victims’ family and friends. Our thoughts and prayers abide with them.”
The Air Force and Okinawa prefectural police said it did not appear that alcohol was involved in the incident.