Japan's first female JASDF Fighter Pilot

1st Lt. Misa Matsushima becomes Japan's first female JASDF fighter pilot. She will be flying the F-15J. Japan had only recently lifted a ban on female pilots flying fighter jets and reconnaissance aircraft in 2015.We at American Mishima wish her great success and for those future women pilots she will inspire. がんばって ください!

Got Stealth? JASDF Orders Additional F-35's

This week it was announced in Japan Today that the JASDF will be purchassing an addition 20 F-35A 5th Generation Stealth Fighters. Unlike the previous 42 advanced fighter planes whose final assembly is done by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries in Japan, these will come directly from Lockheed Martin in the United States. Sources state issues with production time tables for this reason and not trade tarrifs imposed by the Trump Regime. The going pricetag for Japan is $100 Million each. Buying direct will save Japan an estimated $30 million per plane. How that works out is not so readily explained but then again we know Beijing is reading and watching. Any realist will tell you that such an upgrade should not be the cause of alarm due to the lack of significant numbers of orders. This generation of Stealth fighters replaces 50 year old F-4 Phantoms and the first of many aging F-15 fighters. Japan will eventually have it's new home grown Stealth Fighter people are calling the F-3 (aka the ATX-D-F3) but that won't be available for another decade. In the meantime, Japan must have a ready force to meet the growing threats from North Korea and troubles on the South China Seas. We hope they will keep Japan safe and contribute to stability in the region.

Japan's Stealth Era Starts Now

Seen here is the JASDF's brand new F-35A Stealth Fighter at Misawa Air Base in Aomori Prefecture. It is the first of ten planes to be deployed between now and April 2018 that will complete a full squadron of these controversial multi-role single engine Generation 5 fighter planes built by U.S. Defense Contractor Lockheed Martin. The JASDF plans to have 42 of these high performance fighters that will carry the long range JSM missiles to counter the growing threats posed by North Korea and those posed in the South China Sea. The F-35A is scheduled to replace Japan's remaining Generation 3 F-4 Phantoms which have been in service for over 40 years. Thier arrival officially brings Japan's Air Self Defense Force into the Stealth Era.

Ignorance Abroad: Trump Visits Japan

In a week that earlier saw Donald Trump make a historically ignorant complaint of how a nation of "Samurai Warriors" could allow missiles not to be shot down, our American Embarrassment arrived in Japan. We presume that no one has bothered to tell him that there has been no Samurai since the end of the Boshin War of 1869 or that PM Shinzo Abe is not the Shogun. None of this of course would make any difference to this man as he would just move on with his lack of finesse or patience for Japanese traditions of subtleties. In his typically reckless tough talk, he had earlier warned the People's Republic of China about the potential big problem they would have with "Warrior Japan" if they didn't reign in North Korea. Granted Japan has a small capable Self Defense Force, it is nowhere the size of the military of Imperial Japan or that of present day China. Such tough talk drenched in ignorance could only be topped off with his own crassness by his disrespect before the Heisei Emperor who he would not bow to but rather shake his hand like he was at some board meeting to dumping an entire box of fish food in a koi pond. How Shinzo Abe puts up with this man is beyond me. It's our hope Japan does not judge America by this crude vulgar man whose regime is under criminal investigation by Special Prosecuter Robert Mueller. It's been suggested that Abe may be taking advantage of Trump's ignorance to quietly "unshackle" Japan's post war military restrictions. It's difficult to say given how they photograph playing golf and later reported foregoing traditional Japanese fare for cheesey American hamburgers. What he will do to embarass us in next in his 12 day Asia tour remains to be seen. We at home will continue to cringe with every headline.

Japan Shops Heavy Lift C-2 Cargo Plane Overseas

 

Japanese Media reported that the JASDF is sending it's own C-2 Heavy Lift Cargo Plane to other countries to entice buyers for the Kawasaki Heavy Industries Tactical Air Lift contender. Japan had a ban on such sales that was lifted by the Abe government in 2014. They are sending this plane to an air show in Dubai and later to New Zealand. Such a sale would be Japan's first overseas arms contract in recent memory. The C-2 Airlifter has a crew of three including two pilots and one loadmaster. She boats a range of 9,800 km (5,300 nm) and a ceiling of 40,000 feet. While smaller than the C-17 Globemaster, she can still carry a Patriot (SAM) Missile Battery or a Mitsubishi H-60 Helicopter at a longer range than the older C-1. The plane is currently operated by the Japanese Air Defense Force.

Chinese Checkers: JASDF Fighter Intercepts Draw Ire

Japan's Air Self Defense Forces have been really busy this year. It is reported that the JASDF has had to scramble fighters 407 times between April 1st and September 30th to intercept Chinese warplanes encroaching on Japanese Air Space. This is double the amount of fighter intercepts for the year of 2015. In a sense of irony, this has drawn cries of foul from Beijing who accuse Japan's pilots of recklessly endangering their pilots and interfering with their activities in or near disputed air space and territorial waters. Activities of which has included the militarization of international airspace and the building of artificial islands for military purposes that The Hague has since ruled unlawful. Despite the ruling, Beijing refuses to recognize it and continues to provoke and complain when someone call them on it. This is like that scene in the film Goodfellah's where Joe Pesci's character kicks Billy Batts to a bloody pulp then has the nerve to complain about what Batts did to his shoes. Well Japan is far from being a bloody pulp and it is up to the JASDF to make sure the PRC's warplanes are met to discourage any hostile action or mistaken intention that could start a war nobody wants. 

Earlier this year, several nations took the PRC to court at The Hague which as fore mentioned above has since ruled against the PRC. We have written about this many times and still do not understand why such provocations are taking place. But it is what it is and it's up to both the JASDF and the US Navy to give the PRC a pause and somehow keep the peace. We don't expect this situation to go away anytime soon and things are just getting increasingly dangerous for the pilots of both China and Japan. There have been incidents in the Miyako Strait and near Okinawa where JASDF fighters have had to turn on their electronic counter measures. In an article posted on CNN Col. Wu Qian, spokesperson for China's Ministry of National Defense said "Such high-frequency reconnaissance against China not only disturbs the routine training of the Chinese military but also undermines the security interests of China." Japan's Defense Ministry has responded by saying: "It has not taken any provocative actions against Chinese military planes nor endangered them as claimed by the spokesman of the Chinese Defense Ministry."

To be continued....

Japan's F-35A Rollout

In a recent lavish celebration held in Texas, American Defense Contractor Lockheed Martin and the Japanese Ministry of Defense has announced the official roll out of the first of 42 F-35A Lightning Stealth Fighter planes for Japan's Air Self Defense Force.Lockheed has partnered with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and other Japanese Contractors to tailor the new Joint Strike Fighter to Japan's specific defense needs.Initial assembly will take place at Fort Worth while final assembly will take place in Nagoya Japan. Japanese pilots will train with other pilots and maintenance personnel from Norway and Italy at Luke Air Force Base in Arizona. The planes will eventually be based at Misawa which is home to the USAF's 35th Fighter Wing flying older F-16's.

All fanfare aside, it is our hope that Mitsubishi will resolve the issues plaguing this controversial 5th Generation fighter plane. While it has its stealth and vertical takeoff and landing capabilities, it's two missile and 1200 round gun limitations are cause for great concerns. It will be up to Japanese engineers to make this work. We at American Mishima wish them all the success. がんばって ください!

New ATD-X2 Footage!

In the latest news of Mitsubishi's new Advanced Technology Demonstrator, it's lone prototype tail number 51-0001 has been seen performing taxi trials. This development is a sure sign that the much anticipated flight trials are coming soon. As we have posted before, Japan initially wanted to purchase F-22 Raptors to replace it's aging F-15 Eagle fleet. But due to export restrictions imposed by the U.S. Congress, Japan was forced to develop it's own 5th Generation Stealth Fighter loosely based or inspired by the F-22. We at American Mishima look forward to seeing this new Zero for the Heisei Generation take to flight!

Kawaii Army or Identity Crisis?

Seen here in this 2012 photo are American built AH-1S Cobra Helicopters of Japan's 4th Anti-Tank Helicopter Squadron based at Kisarazu Chiba painted with colorful Anime characters. When we first came across an article written in the New Yorker about Japan's Cute Army we were like なんだいよ!?! For a moment we thought the SDF must be going through some identity crisis as the article erroneously suggested until we found another article that better explains this photo. As it turns out, this was part of a promotion marking the 20th anniversary of the squadron's founding in March 27th, 1992. The characters were the result of the "Dousenaru Pro ni Design wo Tanomou” project. There are four of these squadron "mascots" known as the Four Sisters of Kisarazu. They are Kisarazu Akane (the eldest, First Lieutenant)Kisarazu Aoi (second, Second Lieutenant) Kisarazu Wakana (third, Leading Private) Kisarazu Yuzu (youngest). These Cobras participated in festivals and military air shows until 2014. While there are female pilots, none resemble or dress like the characters due to SDF regulations. Despite it's popularity with the masses, the Cobras eventually returned to their normal camouflage to resume operations.

A New Zero for the Heisei Generation

Introducing Japan's first Generation 5 Stealth Fighter: The Mitsubishi ATX-D F3 Shinshin. It is not only Japan's first Stealth fighter but it's the third fighter built by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries since the end of WWII. This is bound to rattle some nerves in the PRC but this is a new era where Japan must meet the challenges to which the PRC and the DPRK have given rise to. 

Born out of necessity to replace Japan's aging fleet of 4th Generation fighters, the "Shinshin" as it will be called was developed after the U.S. Congress nixed Japan's desire to purchase F-22 Raptors in fear of compromising any Stealth Technological advantages. The F-3 is powered by two IHI X51 Turbofans and will have afterburners with thrust vectoring (a key component on the F-22). This will be a true Air Superiority single seat fighter with one two seat variant for training. They are expected to go into production in 2017 and into service by 2027. 

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries who once brought you the legendary A6M Zero had given this new multibillion yen Zero for the Heisei Generation the name ATD-X which is an acronym meaning "Advanced Technology Demonstrator – X". The aircraft is widely known in Japan as Shinshin (心神^?, meaning "Spirit of the Heart"). We at American Mishima look forward to learning more about her over the coming years.

がんばれ 日本!

Japan's New Stealth Fighter

Seen here (or not seen) is the new JASDF Stealth Fighter on display at Kadena Air Base in Japan.

なんちゃって!!!

No Seriously!
Japan's Self Defense Forces do not own any Stealth Fighters.
At least not yet...

 Here is a full scale mockup of the F-35J Model for the future JASDF.
It's good to see they are planning ahead. Pay attention PRC.