Photo/Illutration During the U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni's Friendship Day on May 5, a U.S. Marine Corps Osprey performs a demonstration flight. (Fumito Suzuki)

IWAKUNI, Yamaguchi Prefecture–The government has announced that the U.S. military will deploy CMV-22 Osprey transport aircraft to its base here by the end of the year, the first such U.S. Navy aircraft stationed in Japan.

Parliamentary Vice-Defense Minister Hisashi Matsumoto visited Iwakuni Mayor Yoshihiko Fukuda and Yamaguchi Governor Tsugumasa Muraoka at their offices on July 15 to deliver the notification.

The Ospreys will replace C-2 transport planes currently stationed at U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni. It will mark the third U.S. Osprey deployment in Japan.

The effort is part of a larger update and reorganization of the U.S. military stationed in Japan, including the replacement of the aircraft carrier currently assigned in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, according to Matsumoto.

F-35C stealth fighter jets will also be deployed at the Iwakuni base, replacing some of the FA-18 fighter jets. The number of CMV-22 Osprey and F-35C to be deployed remains undisclosed.

The deployment of Ospreys has raised concerns among local residents due to the tilt-rotor transport aircraft's history of accidents.

A U.S. Air Force Osprey crashed off the coast of Kagoshima Prefecture in November, killing all eight crew members on board.

All Osprey flights were grounded worldwide following the crash, but they were reinstated in March without the cause of the accident being fully disclosed.

Fukuda gave a cautiously vague response to the announcement, offering neither a welcome nor opposition.

“The city will make a comprehensive assessment of the plan after examining the issues involved,” he told Matsumoto.

Muraoka expressed similar concerns, saying, “We will seek additional information from the national government on how it is ensuring safety.”

However, one conservative municipal assembly member stated that the deployment is "a foregone conclusion," given how the Okinawa Osprey deployment proceeded despite opposition from all local governments on the island.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said on July 16 that the deployment of Osprey and other aircraft "demonstrates the United States' unwavering commitment to the bilateral alliance and its deterrent and response capabilities."

The U.S. Navy in Japan emphasized the Osprey's advantages over C-2 transport planes, citing its greater operational range, faster cargo handling and aerial refueling capability.

The deployment of the U.S. Osprey in Japan began in 2012 at Marine Corps Air Station Futenma in Okinawa Prefecture. Since 2018, they have also been stationed at Yokota Air Base in Tokyo.

While the Iwakuni air station has been used regularly as a refueling stop for Ospreys, this is the first time the aircraft have been permanently deployed there.

The Japanese Ground Self-Defense Force has 17 Ospreys currently assigned to Camp Kisarazu in Chiba Prefecture, which are scheduled to be relocated to the Kyushu-Saga International Airport in Saga Prefecture next year.

(This article was written by Fumito Suzuki and Takuro Yamano.)

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