September 23, 2010

Two U.S. Air Force fighters flew to the U.S. Marines Corps Futenma Air Station in Okinawa on September 22 for training. The training was carried out ostensibly for the need to “divert” training exercises due to the upcoming repair of the runways at the Kadena base to which the fighters belong.

The 18th Air Wing commander at the Kadena base said that that aircraft will most likely be diverted to Futenma while the two Kadena runways are being repaired. The repair work will begin in October and is scheduled to continue for 18 months.

Mayor Iha Yoichi of Ginowan City, where the Futema base is located, visited the Foreign Ministry’s Okinawa Office on the day that the flight exercises were diverted to Futenma. The mayor protested against the fighters’ flight training taking place over residential areas, and demanded that the ministry request that the U.S. forces cancel the training exercises.
-Akahata, September 23, 2010