On Jul. 6, a helicopter carrying TV staff may have crashed around noon in waters off northeastern Japan's Aomori Prefecture, Kyodo News reported.

The site of the accident is around Omazaki Cape on the northernmost tip of the Shimokita Peninsula, just about 120 km south of the venue of the Group of Eight summit meeting in Japan's northernmost Hokkaido Prefecture.

Local police said they received a call reporting a loud noise shortly before the disappearance of the helicopter over the sea.

The helicopter's company said four people were on board, including two pilots, one announcer and one cameraman from the Aomori bureau of the Asahi Broadcasting. They left Aomori airport just past 11 a.m. and was scheduled to return by about 2 p.m.

The TV bureau confirmed that the helicopter carrying their staff, who were on assignment to cover a fire accident on a Maritime Self-Defense Force vessel, had not returned on time.

Police said they had started searching for the helicopter in the region.

The venue of the G8 summit, which will begin on Jul. 7, is just north across the strait on the southern part of Hokkaido. Many foreign leaders, including U.S. President George W. Bush, arrived in Hokkaido for the summit earlier in the day.

The Japanese government has increased security to the highest level around the region. Anti-missile shield for possible air strike and hijackings are in operation.