For the first time, the U.S. Marine Corps has conducted a cross-training exercise with the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) that saw Marine air traffic controllers guide JMSDF helicopter pilots to perform landings on a simulated austere runway.
Previously, such exercises were carried out at Okinawa, but this time it was done at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni with help from their Japanese counterparts.
“It’s great now that we have the ability to do all the training we need in order to get Marine air traffic controller mobile team members here on station rather than having to send them to other locations to get that training,” said 1st Lt. Jeremy Graves, air traffic control officer at MACS-4 Detachment B.