US special operations aircraft practiced air refueling with ASDF

August 2, 2017

TOKYO- Japan and the United States conducted a joint drill in June in which US special operations aircraft refueled Japanese Air Self-Defense Force rescue helicopters in midair, informed sources have said.

The drill may have been intended not only to improve preparedness for natural disasters but also to strengthen their ability to work together to rescue US soldiers injured in emergency situations. Japan's Defense Ministry has not announced that the drill was conducted.

According to the sources, including US forces in Japan, the drill was carried out June 12-21.

ASDF rescue helicopters participated in the drill from the Hamamatsu and Komatsu bases, in the central Japan prefectures of Shizuoka and Ishikawa, respectively.

The MC-130 Combat Talon transport aircraft of the 353rd Special Operations Group belonging to the US Air Force's Kadena Base in Okinawa Prefecture, southernmost Japan, also participated, according to the sources.

For the drill, the two sides assembled over the Sea of Japan and the Pacific Ocean. Participants also engaged in training in nighttime air refueling using night-vision goggles.

Japan's national security laws allow the SDF to provide logistic and other support to US and other foreign troops without being bound by geographical restrictions and conduct search-and-rescue activities for combatants in a situation that affects its peace and security significantly, such as a contingency on the Korean Peninsula.

The June drill was no different from exercises conducted before the security laws came into force last year and was not aimed at training SDF personnel for activities made possible by the legislation, according to the ministry.

The ministry did not make an announcement of the drill because similar exercises are conducted constantly and its impact on other countries was considered limited, an official said.

In November last year, the US military and the SDF held a joint drill in waters near Okinawa to practice responses to a contingency with grave repercussions on Japan. Participants conducted search-and-rescue activities in a scenario that US military aircraft had crashed into the sea. Jiji Press