Officials at Yokota Air Base in western Tokyo have warned base personnel not to mail handcrafted or replica weapons. (Stars and Stripes)
YOKOTA AIR BASE, Japan — The Air Force is warning its personnel to avoid mailing replica weapons after handcrafted “inert” grenades prompted an eight-hour work stoppage by an airline in Chicago.
“Ammunition, explosives, any replica or inert explosive devices, and military training devices originally designed for combat use are prohibited in the [Military Postal Service],” Tech Sgt. Henry Quintez, postmaster for Yokota, the home of U.S. Forces Japan in western Tokyo, said in comments provided by the base in an email Thursday.
The reminder followed a message sent to base personnel earlier this month warning them not to mail handcrafted or replica weapons.
The alert, sent by Master Sgt. Jacqueline Swinson of the 374th Airlift Wing’s command section, noted that “handcrafted `inert’ grenades were found and caused an 8-hr work stoppage by an airline in Chicago.”
Officials at Yokota Air Base in western Tokyo have warned base personnel not to mail handcrafted or replica weapons. (Stars and Stripes)
Yokota’s public affairs office did not provide more details about the incident.
The air passenger terminal at Yokota has seen no similar cases of inert weapons shipped in passenger baggage, a wing spokeswoman, Staff Sgt. Jessice Avallone, said in Thursday’s email. The Patriot Express, a contracted air service, makes scheduled stops and space-available flights are available to eligible personnel at Yokota. Terminal personnel there routinely screen cargo, baggage and passengers.
Neither has the Pacific Air Forces Air Postal Squadron reported any incidents, Avallone said. The squadron has detachments at Yokota and Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii.
“The measures enacted by both agencies ensure that the Yokota postal mission is safe and timely while successfully delivering mail in support of our members overseas,” she said.
However, anyone mailing packages from military post offices should be aware of the U.S. Postal Service guidelines and check the prohibited items list posted at each register, Avallone said.
