Japanese Type 10 is Expensive Than Type 90 Main Battle Tank (MBT)

Images from the induction ceremony of the Japanese Type 10 (10式戦車) Main Battle Tank (MBT).

 

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Mitsubishi Electric hit with suspension for bill padding

The Defense Ministry and two other government entities have suspended Mitsubishi Electric Corp. as a designated contractor because the company has been found to have inflated invoices, the ministry has announced. The ministry, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and the Cabinet Satellite Intelligence Center made the announcements and suspended the company Friday for unspecified periods. The ministry added that Mitsubishi contacted it to admit the allegations the same day.

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Kawasaki XP-1 Maritime Patrol Aircraft with Type 91 Anti-Ship Missiles

The Kawasaki XP-1 is a maritime patrol aircraft to replace the old P-3C maritime patrol aircraft operated by the Japan Maritime Self-Defense For...

 

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US, Japan, Australia plan South China Sea drill

The US, Japanese and Australian navies will Saturday hold a joint drill in the South China Sea -- most of which China claims as its maritime territory -- Japan's defence ministry said. Japan's Maritime Self-Defence Force will send destroyer Shimakaze to join a US Navy destroyer and a Royal Australian Navy patrol boat for communications training and other drills off Brunei, the defence ministry said Friday. It will be their first joint military exercise in the South China Sea, most of which an increasingly assertive China claims as its maritime territory, but where several Southeast Asian nations have competing claims.

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Japan To Send Troops To Remote Yonaguni Island 60 miles east of Taiwan

Tokyo will send around 100 soldiers to a remote Japanese island in the East China Sea, a report said Thursday, amid growing anxiety over China's naval activities.The ground troops will be deployed on Yonaguni island, Japan's westernmost point, to carry out coastal patrols and surveillance of Chinese naval vessels, Jiji news agency quoted defense officials as saying.Tokyo eventually plans to double the number of troops stationed on Yonaguni, which is roughly 60 miles east of Taiwan, the report said.The area is a frequent flashpoint for troubles between Japan and China.

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Decision on new fighter jets up in the air:Japan

The Defense Ministry will not specify which type of next-generation FX fighter jet it plans to purchase for the Air Self-Defense Force in a new midterm national defense program to be compiled next month, according to sources.The ministry will be unable to name the fighter because of insufficient information on the performance of the F-35, a leading candidate to become the ASDF's new mainstay fighter that is being jointly developed by Britain, the United States and seven other countries.Delays in development of the F-35 will likely force the U.S. military to postpone its own deployment of the jet until 2016 or later.Other candidate fighters are the Eurofighter jointly developed by Britain, Germany and two other European countries, and the F/A-18E/F manufactured by the United States.However, because of the delay with the F-35, the ministry will set up a committee in April or later that will select one of the three candidate fighters based on performance comparisons.

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Japan Eyes Procuring F-35 fighters; Gives up on More F-2 jets

The Defense Ministry has set its sights on procuring the F-35 fighter as Japan’s main next-generation fighter aircraft for the Air Self-Defense Force, giving up on an earlier plan to buy more F-2 fighters, ministry and Self-Defense Forces sources said Sunday.The ministry plans to seek procurement costs for the F-35 in its budget request for fiscal 2012 and is slated to begin full-fledged arrangements for the procurement plan early next year through a selection committee to prepare for the budget request deadline next summer, the sources said.The ministry was planning to retool its current main F-15 fighters and buy more F-2 jets as a stopgap measure, given the delay in the development of the fifth-generation F-35 stealth fighter capable of flying at supersonic speeds as well as its price increase.But the ministry has determined that procuring the less functional F-2 aircraft additionally would not be expedient from the standpoint of deterrence and cost, the sources said.

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Joint Japan-U.S. Missile Defense Flight Test Successful

The Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) and the United States Missile Defense Agency (MDA) announced the successful completion of an Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD) intercept flight test, in cooperation with the U.S. Navy, off the coast of Kauai in Hawaii.

The event marked the fourth time that a JMSDF ship has engaged a ballistic missile target, including three successful intercepts, with the sea-based midcourse engagement capability provided by Aegis BMD.

The JFTM-4 test event verified the newest engagement capability of the Japan Aegis BMD configuration of the recently upgraded Japanese destroyer, JS KIRISHIMA. At approximately 5:06 p.m. (HST), 12:06 p.m. Tokyo time on Oct. 29, 2010, a separating 1,000 km class ballistic missile target was launched from the Pacific Missile Range Facility at Barking Sands, Kauai, Hawaii.

JS KIRISHIMA crew members detected and tracked the target. The Aegis Weapon System then developed a fire control solution and launched a Standard Missile -3 (SM-3) Block IA missile. Approximately three minutes later, the SM-3 successfully intercepted the target approximately 100 miles above the Pacific Ocean. JFTM-4 is a significant milestone in the growing cooperation between Japan and the U.S. in the area of missile defense.

Also participating in the test was USS LAKE ERIE and USS RUSSELL, Aegis ships which cooperated to detect, track and conduct a simulated intercept engagement against the same target.

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Understanding Asia-Pacific Sea Power

Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) boasts the world's largest fleet. For example, in August, The Economist published a story titled ‘Naval Gazing’, noting that the London-based International Institute of Strategic Studies said China now has more warships than the United States. And sure enough, accompanying the story was a graphic showing that the PLAN has. For example, he noted that the US Navy ‘operates 11 large carriers…In terms of size and striking power, no other country has even one comparable ship.’ It ‘has 57 nuclear-powered attack and cruise missile submarine—again, more than the rest of the world combined.’ And ‘the displacement of the US battle fleet—a proxy for overall fleet capabilities—exceeds, by one recent estimate, at least the next 13 navies combined.’PLAN boasts 1,045 vessels of all types—more than double the number available to the United States. According to the Naval Vessel Register, the US Navy is currently comprised of 287 ships, of which 257 are in full commission and ready for service. Add in the 163 civilian-crewed non-combatant vessels of the Military Sealift Command (51 of which are laid up in reduced operating status) and the grand total is 450 ships at US policymakers' disposal.

None of this is lost on Beijing. In fact, Chinese commanders count on employing packs of small, nimble, hard-hitting fast attack boats to contest an adversary's attempts to impose sea control along the mainland seaboard. Stealthy Type 022 Houbei catamarans displacing about 220 tons are designed specifically to use hit-and-run tactics against larger warships. Armed with long-range anti-ship cruise missiles, they punch well above their weight. As long as the PLAN contents itself with fighting within range of shore-based aircraft, small surface and subsurface combatants and antiship missiles, that weaponry must be factored into the fleet's overall strength.  Nor do all the aircraft carriers and missile-toting destroyers in the world mean much if the US Pacific Fleet dare not venture within range of Chinese anti-ship ballistic missilesand so can’t bring its offensive firepower to bear.

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Northrop Grumman Might Sell 3 Global Hawks to Japan

Northrop Grumman today confirmed that it is negotiating the possible sale of three of its high-altitude, long-endurance Global Hawk unmanned aerial vehicles to Japan. The company did not disclose the possible sale price of the unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), where are developed in San Diego County."Currently, JMoD has not selected Global Hawk or finalized its operational requirements. Using the U.S. Air Force operations as an example, three to four Global Hawk aircraft provide a longer term operating capability, including the ability to provide long periods of continuous, round-the-clock ISR coverage."

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Japan to keep closer watch over its skies

The government is considering deploying early warning aircraft to monitor a blind spot in its far southwestern perimeter that includes the Senkaku Islands, which were the subject of a bitter territorial dispute with China last month.E2-C early warning aircraft are currently based at Misawa Air Base in Aomori Prefecture, but Defense Ministry officials are considering rotating some of them to Naha Air Base on a temporary basis to conduct surveillance over the long chain of islands extending south of Kyushu toward Taiwan.The air space above Japan is observed around the clock by a national network of 28 ground-based radar sites, as well as E2-C propeller aircraft and larger E-767 airborne early warning and control aircraft.

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Japan is Looking to Buy Three Global Hawk UAVs

The Defense Ministry is looking to buy three Global Hawk reconnaissance aircraft from the United States to deal with China's militarization and North Korea's nuclear and ballistic missile programs, Self-Defense Force and ministry sources said Sunday.The ministry hopes to insert the plan for buying the unmanned high-altitude aircraft into its new Mid-Term Defense Program for fiscal 2011-2015. Equipped with sophisticated cameras and highly sensitive communications-receiving abilities, the Global Hawk can fly at an altitude of roughly 18,000 meters — about twice as high as commercial aircraft can — for just over 30 hours on autopilot.

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Japan to Cancel Contract to Upgrade F-15J Fighter Jet with Reconnaissance Functions

The Defense Ministry said Friday it has decided not to allow Toshiba Corp. to delay the delivery of an F-15 fighter after adding reconnaissance functions.Negotiations are under way to cancel the contract, the ministry said.Under a package of contracts signed in fiscal 2007 and 2008 in the total amount of 10 billion yen, Toshiba is required to deliver the fighter between September and October after adding optical and infrared cameras and other reconnaissance devices to its bottom part.Failing to procure necessary parts from abroad, however, Toshiba asked the ministry for permission to delay the delivery until spring 2012.

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7th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron from Japan

After four months, numerous flights aboard C-17s and stops in Hawaii, the 7th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron returned to Holloman on Friday.Members from the 49th Maintenance Group, 49th Operations Group, 49th Mission Support Group and the 44th Fighter Group left May 27 for the first major deployment of the F-22 to the Pacific in Holloman's history.The deployment sent 285 "Fightin' 49ers" and 12 F-22A Raptors to the remote island of Okinawa, Japan, where clear airspace overhead and miles of water around allowed the fifth generation fighter to train alongside Kadena Air Base's F-15C Eagles and KC-135 Stratotankers, while also working with Marine Corp.

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India, Japan set to boost military ties

Amidst diplomatic tension between Tokyo and Beijing, China’s two neighbours Japan and India today signalled a significant boost in their military ties. The two nations will conduct their first ever Army-to-Army talks starting tomorrow in New Delhi. Separately, the Indian Air Force Chief will be visiting Japan. The four-day talks come at time when China is exerting pressure on Japan and the two countries are locked in a bitter dispute over the control of un-inhabited islands in the South East China Sea. India, early this month, upped its military relations with South Korea, another China’s neighbour. South Korea and China see each other with suspicion largely due to China’s “friendship” with North Korea - a major irritant for the South Korea. Apart from the Army-level talks that will plan joint exercises and military exchanges between India and Japan, the IAF Chief Air Chief Marshall P V Naik will embark on a four-day visit to Tokyo tomorrow. "Naik will be on a goodwill visit to Tokyo….. while a Japanese Army team will be in Delhi to chalk out programmes aimed at furthering army-to-army contact," 

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Why China’s Navy is a Threat

By James R. Holmes and Toshi Yoshihara

Civilian academics who study military affairs like to hold forth on tactical matters. But this can lead to misguided advice. First of all, Loo deprecates 'an alleged aircraft carrier-killing cruise missile,' suggesting a sea-skimming anti-ship missile with a range of a few score miles. But the anti-ship missile that vexes China-watchers is an anti-ship ballistic missile (ASBM), a weapon whose range, speed and hitting power dwarf that of any cruise missile. Estimates vary, but should the PLA perfect its ASBM, Chinese racketeers could pound away at ships underway up to 2,000 miles away.

Moreover, Loo seems to think the US Pacific Fleet can easily mass overwhelming strength in the South China Sea to beat back a Chinese naval offensive. At first glance this appears reasonable. But at 287 vessels, the US Navy is now smaller in raw numbers than before World War I, and it is dispersed across the globe discharging countless missions.This declining fleet must contend with a PLA Navy that has spent the last 15 years devising capabilities—of which the ASBM represents only one—aimed at exploiting US weaknesses in antisubmarine warfare, mine countermeasures and other niche areas. The result? Chinese mariners can now impose steep costs on the US Pacific Fleet, contesting its ability even to reach a theater of combat like the South China Sea—much less to wage war effectively once there.

http://the-diplomat.com/2010/09/17/why-chinas-navy-is-a-threat/

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Japan's Foreign Minister Voices Concern On China Defense Spending

Japan's new Foreign Minister Seiji Maehara on Sept. 17 voiced concern over the level of China's defense spending, speaking hours after he was appointed and amid a tense territorial fight with China."It is important to further promote strategic mutually beneficial Japan-China relations," Maehara, considered a security affairs specialist and a hawk on China, said at his first press conference in the post.Japan, along with the United States and Australia, has voiced concern over China's military spending, which has grown in double digits for many years and by 7.5 percent most recently, according to figures Beijing released in March.

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Japanese P3 Orion's Engine Change at RAAF Base Darwin

After Exercise Kakadu, the Japan Maritime Self Defence Force worked side by side with members of the Royal Australian Air Force, utilising the Joint Task Force 639 Air Component Coordination Element hangar for a required engine change to the Japanese P3 Orion.

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Futenma report presents 2 runway options

The government on Tuesday released the report of a Japan-U.S. expert panel on a planned alternative facility for the U.S. Marine Corps' Futenma Air Station in Okinawa Prefecture.The report features two conflicting plans for runway layouts. One layout option is a plan agreed upon between Japan and the United States in 2006 to build two runways in a V-shaped formation, a plan that Washington still favors. The other option is a plan more recently advanced by Japan to build a single I-shaped runway.The report also states the facility will be built by reclaiming land from waters off the Henoko district of Nago in the prefecture.
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Japan has Decided to Postpone FX fighter jet for Air Self-Defense Force

The Yomiuri Shimbun

Government efforts to select the next generation of mainstay FX fighter jet for the Air Self-Defense Force, a decision likely to have a profound effect on the future of the nation's air defense, have come to a standstill.The deadline to choose the successor to the ASDF's aging F-4 fighters is said to be 2016. But the Defense Ministry is likely to demand only research expenses for the FX fighter in its fiscal 2011 budget request to be submitted Tuesday. The ministry has unofficially decided to postpone the budget request to procure next-generation mainstay FX fighter jets.The strain in the Japan-U.S. relationship caused by the ruling Democratic Party of Japan's handling of the relocation of the U.S. Futenma Air Station in Okinawa Prefecture has hampered Japan's ability to select FX fighters, observers said.

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