TOKYO (AFP) - Powerful typhoon Vongfong slammed into Japan on Monday morning, with at least one person missing and dozens injured while more than 300 flights were grounded, officials and local media said.

Winds of up to 180 kmh whipped ashore as the typhoon made landfall in Makurazaki on Kyushu island at around 8.30am local time, the meteorological agency said.

Three Chinese people were engulfed by high waves triggered by the typhoon in Shizuoka, central Japan, on Sunday afternoon, Japan's public broadcaster NHK and the Mainichi Shimbun said, adding that two of them were rescued but one was still missing.

NHK also said at least 44 people were injured in typhoon-related accidents, while Japanese airlines cancelled at least 329 flights.

The typhoon came just a week after another strong tropical storm whipped through the country, leaving 11 people dead or missing.