Japan considered drone fighters under ex-defense chief Taro Kono
The Air Self-Defense Force's aging F-2s are expected to start being retired within two decades. Drones, with no space for a pilot and no safety kit, cost less to build.
Japan to build prototype of F-2 successor fighter from fiscal 2024
A company to undertake the manufacturing of the fighter body will be selected as early as in October, the Defense Ministry said.
Japan launches new squadron to step up defense in outer space
The squadron, part of the Air Self-Defense Force, will monitor space debris and suspicious satellites to prevent collisions with Japanese satellites.
Japan to launch ASDF space unit to monitor threat to satellites
Japan will launch its first space operations unit within the Air Self-Defense Force on May 18 to monitor threats to Japanese satellites in outer space, Defense Minister Taro Kono has said. The Space Domain Mission Unit will be tasked with tracking space debris and meteorites ...
Former ASDF colonel indicted over defense leak involving E-2D early warning plane
Tokyo prosecutors indicted on Friday a former Air Self-Defense Force officer for allegedly leaking confidential information on a U.S.-made military aircraft to unauthorized individuals. According to the indictment, former ASDF Col. So Kanno, 58, showed two people including a trading house employee data on the ...
Two Air Self-Defense Force planes arrived at an air base on the outskirts of Sydney on Thursday to assist in fighting unprecedented and deadly bush fires across the country. ASDF Col. Masashi Ota, who is leading the mission, told reporters upon arrival that he is ...
Blue Impulse aerobatics team to draw Olympic rings in sky at flame-welcoming ceremony
Japan's Blue Impulse aerobatics team will draw the five Olympic rings in the sky with colored smoke at a ceremony in March to mark the arrival of the sacred flame from Greece, a source said Friday. The 2020 Tokyo Organising Committee has decided that the ...
U.S. B-52 bombers make rare training flight over Sea of Japan with ASDF
Two U.S. B-52 heavy bombers made a rare training flight with the Air Self-Defense Force over the Sea of Japan last week, in a mission that likely comes in response to a spate of North Korean short-range missile tests over the last several months. The ...
ASDF holds PAC-3 missile defense drill in Tokyo after spate of North Korean launches
The Air Self-Defense Force carried out a quick deployment drill for its Patriot Advanced Capability-3, or PAC-3, missile interceptors in Tokyo on Wednesday, in order to maintain readiness for missile defense operations. The drill, held at the Tokyo Rinkai Disaster Prevention Park, followed a series ...
Japan eyes new defense unit to monitor space from ASDF base in west Tokyo
The Defense Ministry has decided to make a budget request for a new space monitoring unit to be set up in fiscal 2020 within its air forces, government sources said Wednesday. The unit, which is aimed at tracking space debris that poses a threat to ...
Air Self-Defense Force concludes F-35A crash off northern Japan caused by human error
The Air Self-Defense Force concluded Friday that the April crash of an F-35A stealth fighter in the Pacific Ocean was caused by "spatial disorientation" on the part of the pilot and not by any mechanical problem. The conclusion is in line with an interim investigative ...
ASDF to resume F-35A flights four months after fatal crash off northern Japan
The Defense Ministry resumed flights of Air Self-Defense Force F-35A stealth fighter jets Thursday afternoon, having suspended them since a fatal crash in April, the first ever reported for the aircraft. In June, the ministry concluded that the crash of an F-35A into the Pacific ...
