The government is trying to persuade local governments concerned in Okinawa and Honshu to accept a U.S. plan to station 24 MV-22 Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft at U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma in Ginowan, Okinawa Prefecture, to replace the same number of CH-46 Sea Knight helicopters stationed there.
The Okinawan people are worried about the safety and noise of the vertical takeoff and landing transport aircraft. On Tuesday, Okinawa Gov. Hirokazu Nakaima and Ginowan Mayor Atsushi Sakima called on Foreign Minister Koichiro Genba and Defense Minister Satoshi Morimoto to stop the deployment of the Osprey.
The government should not force the deployment of the Osprey unless the Okinawan people agree. Otherwise, it will only deepen their grievances and their feelings that Okinawa is being discriminated against. The government has a plan to bring the MV-22s first to the U.S. Marine base in Iwakuni, Yamaguchi Prefecture. It hopes to bring the aircraft to Futenma later after demonstrating that the aircraft is safe through test flights.