"Ronald Reagan will continue to operate near Japan in order to best support disaster relief efforts led by the Japan Self Defence Force," the US Pacific Fleet said on its Facebook page.

Japan had so far asked the carrier to provide refuelling operations for its helicopters and to assist in the transportation of its troops to affected areas, it said.

Separately, a 144 member rescue team of the US Agency for International Development was scheduled to arrive in Misawa, northern Japan, on Sunday, to join inland operations, the Japanese foreign ministry said.