Anyone familiar enough with military politics in Japan to explain why there’s been a significant increase in the aircraft flying by?
I’ve been in Northwest Kumamoto prefecture for almost three months. In the last 3-4 weeks, and especially the last few days, low flying aircraft have been passing by. I know training takes place and I’m bound to notice it as my location is close to a military base. But still I find it unusual for helicopters to fly so frequently and so low my whole house shakes. It’s not training at this point and if I’m not mistaken, a US transport helicopter passed through.
Just today two aircraft have passed by, one of them twice. Any ideas?
https://www.reddit.com/r/japan/comments/113g7ma/increase_of_low_flying_aircraft/
3 comments
It’s probably a visiting unit from the States, potentially Naval or Marine aviation out of Sasebo.
“Local” avaition units stationed in Japan by and large tend to play nice because pissing off the community will get the local defense bureau on their case. But visiting units don’t give a shit. They’ll conduct seagull ops all day (be a nuisance and then fly away) because their commander doesn’t get an earful and then turn around to give the unit grief.
When I was stationed in Okinawa, it was a pain in the ass when the F-22s out of Alaska would visit Kadena Air Base. Low level takeoffs punching their afterburners and shaking the whole apartment building.
Try living in Okinawa.
They are doing airmen stuff.
There’s a JASDF base near where we live, and they often just seem to take off, do sky doughnuts for a while, and then land again.
I suppose that they need to get their flying hours up, and to ensure that the newkids know what all those buttons, knobs, and switches are for.