Defense Minister of Japan Itsunori Onodera said Sunday the Self-Defense Forces plans to deploy MV-22 Osprey transport aircraft at Saga airport when it begins introducing the U.S. tilt-rotor plane in fiscal 2015. In his first public mention of an expected deployment site for SDF-operated Osprey aircraft, Onodera told reporters he recently informed Saga Gov. Yasushi Furukawa of the plan.
Onodera plans to send Parliamentary Senior Vice Defense Minister Ryota Takeda to Saga Prefecture on Tuesday to explain the deployment plan and ask for local support, sources said. The negotiations might not be easy, however, as public opposition for deployment of Osprey remains strong, due to safety and noise concerns.
The SDF aims to build an amphibious force modeled after the U.S. Marine Corps in Sasebo, Nagasaki Prefecture, which neighbors Saga, by fiscal 2018 to bolster Japan’s ability to defend its remote islands on the back of China’s increased maritime activities in recent years.
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