The Japanese Defense Ministry has announced that the completion of a new field carrier landing practice (FCLP) facility on Mage Island in Kagoshima Prefecture, southwestern Japan, will be delayed until March 2030, three years behind the initial schedule. The base, which began construction in January 2023, was originally slated for completion in 2027.
The project, aimed at relocating U.S. fighter jet drills from Iwoto Island, has encountered significant setbacks. Primary factors include manpower and material shortages, exacerbated by the powerful earthquake that struck Ishikawa Prefecture on New Year’s Day. Additional challenges involve rough sea conditions impeding material transport and unsuitable local earth for landfill work.
The Mage Island base is a crucial component in the realignment of U.S. forces in Japan, as outlined in the 2011 U.S. military realignment accord between Tokyo and Washington. It will serve as a permanent replacement for the current training site on Iwoto Island, located 1,250 kilometers south of Tokyo. The relocation addresses logistical challenges faced by U.S. fighter jets now based in Iwakuni, Yamaguchi Prefecture, which is about 400 km north of Mage Island.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno emphasized the base’s importance, stating it is “indispensable” for U.S. aircraft carriers to operate constantly in the Asia-Pacific region. The project moved forward after Kagoshima Governor Koichi Shiota approved it in November 2022, citing the “increasingly severe security environment” surrounding Japan.
Historical context reveals that U.S. military aircraft takeoff and landing practices were originally conducted at the Atsugi base near Tokyo. Due to noise complaints, these were temporarily relocated to Iwoto Island in the early 1990s. By 2018, all fighters were transferred to Iwakuni, necessitating a more convenient training location, as Iwoto Island is around 1,400 km away from Iwakuni.
Despite the delay, the Defense Ministry expects the two planned runways to be operational by late 2027, potentially allowing U.S. military exercises to commence by 2030. The facility will also support training for the Japan Air Self-Defense Force’s F-35B stealth fighters and the Ground Self-Defense Force’s Amphibious Rapid Deployment Brigade.
As Japan grapples with what officials describe as the “most severe and complicated security environment of the postwar era,” the Defense Ministry continues to work towards minimizing further delays in this strategically important project.
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