Helicopter catches on fire after making an emergency landing - Takamatsu, Kagawa Prefecture - Japan.

Smoke alarm: A helicopter catches fire Thursday after making an emergency landing in Higashikagawa, Kagawa Prefecture.

KYODO PHOTO

TAKAMATSU, Kagawa Pref. — A helicopter made an emergency landing and caught fire Thursday in Higashikagawa, Kagawa Prefecture, but the three men onboard escaped injury, police said.

After departing Takamatsu airport around 9:25 a.m., the pilot saw smoke coming from the aft end of the aircraft, which was chartered by Shikoku Electric Power Co. to check for typhoon damage to power cables, police said. The pilot made the emergency landing in a baseball field around 10:20 a.m. The aircraft went up in flames after the pilot and the two power company employees got out.

The Eurocopter-made aircraft operated by Shikoku Air Service Co., based in Takamatsu, was scheduled to return to the airport around 11:25 a.m. The Transport Safety Board dispatched two investigators to the accident site.

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