<General>
1. Usually, the JASDF release their open house schedule at around 20th March every year.
( They release only the date before July, but in these 2 years, they release almost all airshow schedules in early Apr. )
2. Usually, the JGSDF release their open house schedule at early March, because they open their camps at the season of the cherry blossoms(early April) to see.
3. Usually, the JMSDF release their open house schedule about 1-2 month before the event.
4. JASDF/JGSDF/JMSDF are "holiday" on Sat. and Sun. and the National holidays in Japan.
Date of the National holidays are changed every year, so please check them every year(or when you start to think your trip to Japan).
There are no activities except routine maritime patrol, exercise, emergency and /or some special missions.
There are some holidays continually from 29 Apr. to 5 May, so we Japanese call the period as "Golden Week".
There will be no flights In this period (and plus 1-2 days for Sat. and Sun.).
In 2024, it will be from 26 Apr. to 6 May..
5. There are also No activities on these days;
1) The day of the local school examinations.
2) The day of the Flying Safety in JASDF which is usually 1st. Jul..
3) The year-end and 1st week of the new year(usually, around 25 Dec to 6 Jan.)
In 2024-25, it will bee 21 Dec. to 6 Jan.
4) "O-bon" period, usually around 12 Aug. to 16 Aug.. In 2024, it will be 9 Aug. to 18 Aug..
5) The next day of the airshow or the open house day, except QRA and the transportation flight.
6. Japanese financial year starts on 1st.Apr. and end(close) 31 Mar. It is important !
There are quite less flight from the 3rd. week of March to the The 1st. week of April(around 15 March to 3-4 April).
Because the end of March marks the end of the financial year in Japan.
They used up their budget (including fuels) for the financial year, and maybe busy to write up /finish their paper-works.
They are also busy for the first few days of April, because new financial year starts 1 Apr. in Japan
This means a lot of "old" organization close on 31 Mar. and establish "new" organization on 1 Apr..
So there are a lot of personnel movements, and relative ceremonies at this season.
In 2024, it will be from 20 Mar. to 4 Apr..
7. Please check the NOTAM at this site before you visit to the airbase;
https://aisjapan.mlit.go.jp/Login.do
You'll be able to get the time schedule of the mass flight, para-drop, and aerobatic
flights etc., for the airshow training.
8. Step ladder regulations
Almost all the JASDF bases have made regulations for the step ladders at the airshow.
They are different from each airbases and changing year by year.
1) You CAN NOT bring it into the base : Iruma, Hamamatsu, Komatsu, Komaki, Hyakuri and Tsuiki.
2) You can bring it into the base, but prohibit to use during the airshow(especially B.I. show); Chitose.
3) You can bring it into the base, but requested minimum use; Other JASDF base, JMSDF air base and JGSDF air fields.
9. Weathers:
1) Usually around 10 Jun. to 20 Jul. are rainy season in Japan. (In Okinawa, late May to mid Jun. No rainy season in Hokkaido)
2) Usually around late Sep. to mid Oct., there are 2 weeks cloudy or rainy days except Okinawa and Hokkaido.
3) Some typhoons hit in mid Aug. to mid Sep.(sometimes it comes in early Oct.).
<JASDF>
1. General:
One fighter squadron usually has 3 training periods in one day from 0800am to 1700pm.
They start engines at about 0730, taxing to the R/W-end at about 0755, and T/O at just 0800.
They sometimes has "Night" training at the 4th period(1700pm or later).
The "Night" trainig schedule are often uploaded on their base-HP or local city hall's HP.
(But usually written in Japanese only.)
2. F-35A/Bs;
1) JASDF will purchase 147 F-35s in total(incl. 42 F-35Bs).(The Cabinet Decision on 18 Dec., 2018)
(Former plan was 42 F-35As).
2) 39-8740 made her F/F on 7 Dec.2023. and she will change her S/N to "4"9-8740) before her delivery, I think.
3) A new F-35B sqn. called "Rinji F-35B hikotai (means temporary F-35B flight squadron)" will establish at Nyutabaru by FY2024-end(Mar. 2025) with 4-6 F-35Bs .
4) One F-15 sqn.(maybe 303 sqn.) at Komatsu will get 4 F-35As in FY2025(Apr.2025-Mar-2026), 8 F-35As in FY2026, and more 8 in FY2027.
One another F-15 sqn.(maybe 306 sqn.) will get 8 F-35As in FY2028.
3. Kawasaki C-1s.(Rev. 21Dec.2023);
1) Active: 001(FTB, Gifu), 002, 021(EC-1, Iruma), 030, 031.
2) The normal C-1s(402 sqn.) seems to retire by the end of FY2024 (by 31 Mar., 2025).
3) EC-1 will retire by the end of FY2024(by 31 Mar., 2025)
4. Active YS-11EA/EBs;
1) YS-11EA: 12-1162 and 12-1163.
They did not have flights in 2023. 1 or 2 YS-11EA(s) will retire "officially" by the end of FY2024.
2) YS-11EB: 82-1155, 02-1159 and 12-1161. 92-1157 had scrapped.
<JMSDF>
1. UH-60Js of the JMSDF will be disband in near future(by FY2024-end).
About 3 UH-60Js are remain at Iwo-tou (Iwo Island or Iwo-jima) in Dec., 2023
The SDF undertake organizational reform that integrate ground-based aerial search and rescue
functions into the ASDF, which are currently performed by both the MSDF and ASDF.
（Medium Term Defense Program (FY2014-FY2018))
They convert 3 SH-60Ks to the rescue-type for the temporary use.
They are 8455(delivered in mid-Nov. 2023) , 8457(start test flight) and one other(still in MHI and will deliver in FY2024, S/N unknown).
2. U-36A (9205 and 9206) will retire by FY2024-end.(by 31 Mar.,2025)
3. US-2 (9901) will be retired by 31 Mar. 2025.
4. There remained 10 SH-60Js at the end of FY2022(31 Mar.2023).
A few SH-60Js were still flying at the starts of FY2024, at Ohmura(HS-22) and Atsugi(VX-51).
5. SH-60L finished its development on 22 Dec.2023.
There are only two(8501 and 8502) SH-60Ls by now but its production will start soon.
<JGSDF>
1. AH-1Ss and AH-64Ds are reducing and they will never use of attack helis any more.
2. OH-1 will be retired in near future.(by 2027)
3. CH-47J seems to be retired by 31 Mar.2024. There are about 3 CH-47Js remaining in JASDF.
<US forces in Japan, General>
1. They fly depend on their schedules and holidays. So when it is Japanese holiday, we can see their training flight.
But they will not fly on the American holidays and day after the Big American football game(s).
<USN in Japan>
1. The CVW-5 usually leave Japan for her six month cruise in mid May and return late November.
2. All the fixed wing Sqn. of the CVW-5 have switched their home base from Atsugi to Iwakuni by 30 Mar., 2018.
Only the helicopter Sqn. keep remaining to the Atsugi.(They will not move to Iwakuni)
<USMC in Japan>
1. Subaru(former Fuji Heavy Industry) started their maintenance service for MV-22s at Kisarazu (JGSDF Kisarazu) .
<USAF in Japan>
1. F-15C/Ds had gone (Some are still remains). Some fighters(F-16s or F-35As or F-15Es or F-22s) are often visit to Kadena for TDY.
2. Usually there comes less than 10 a/cs at USAF/JASDF Yokota in one day (There come 0-5 a/cs in the daytime).
Please check this site(Japanese only).
http://kokuki-iroiro.cocolog-nifty.com/blog/
<Wrecks and Relics in Japan>
1. Check the spottingmode.com, I myself sometimes write updates there.
2. My blog (Japanese only,
https://wrecks.hatenablog.com/) will give you some helps for your trip in Japan.
That's all today.
Uni
