The U.S. Air Force conducted at least 150 loading drills for nuclear weapons in Okinawa in the first half of 1957 not far from civilian areas, declassified documents show.
The 1955-64 annual reports by the 313th Air Division reveal that Okinawa, which was under U.S. control at the time, was used as a strategically important base for the military to prepare for the use of nuclear weapons in Asia in the midst of the Cold War.
According to the 1957 report of the division, which was operating the Kadena Air Base, personnel of the 12th Aviation Depot Squadron were trained to offload nuclear weapons from arriving aircraft, inspect them, and reload them in preparation for a potential strike.