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YOKOTA AIR BASE, Japan -- JASDF demonstrates anti-air missile capabilities as North Korea launches missile
By Senior Airman Kyle Johnson
374th Airlift Wing Public Affairs
YOKOTA AIR BASE, Japan – The Japan Air Self-Defense Force demonstrated their ability to rapidly deploy the Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) guided air-and-missile defense system as a means of rapidly responding to North Korean missile threats at a press conference held Aug. 29.
PAC-3 is a mobile weapons system that can be set up anywhere, anytime to rapidly respond to a foreign missile threat.
Though the conference was held a few hours after North Korea launched a missile into Japanese airspace, the event was planned long before the North Korean launch.
“Having shown our readiness in [ballistic missile defense] operations as a result of this training, it will lead to enhanced deterrence and capability of not only Japan's Self-Defense Forces, but also the Japan-U.S. alliance,” said JASDF Lt. Gen. Hiroaki Maehara, head of Japan’s Air Defense Command said in a press conference shortly after the North Korean missile launch. “Moreover, it will showcase Japan’s strong commitment and high capability toward peace and security in the Asia-Pacific region.”
JASDF will temporarily deploy the batteries to several U.S. installations in Japan. The installations - Yokota Air Base, Misawa Air Base, Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Yokohama North Dock and U.S. Fleet Activities Sasebo - house both U.S. and Japanese forces and play a vital role in the defense of Japan.
The exercise deployment of the Patriot missiles will test the interoperability of the U.S. and its Japanese allies, allow for on-site assessments of firing locations, and provide the JASDF with opportunities to test their air defense assets under conditions that will simulate a real-world deployment.
According to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s website, the Patriot system was first deployed by U.S. forces in the 1980s and has been subsequently improved with new technology which delivers unsurpassed air defense capabilities.
PAC-3 is designed to target and destroy potential threats to allied assets from advanced aircraft, tactical ballistic missiles and cruise missiles by projecting a 320kg missile more than 5,000 kilometers per hour toward its target.
Military-to-military exercises like this one demonstrate the strength of the U.S.-Japan alliance and the determination of both nations to address the security challenge posed by North Korea's ballistic missile and nuclear weapons programs.
| Date Taken: | 08.29.2017 |
| Date Posted: | 08.29.2017 21:21 |
| Story ID: | 246483 |
| Location: | YOKOTA AIR BASE, TOKYO, JP |
| Web Views: | 434 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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