Signaling that the USS Kitty Hawk is gearing up for its next deployment, the Navy last week announced the next round of night landing practices will be 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. May 11-20 at Iwo Jima and May 18-20 at Naval Air Facility Atsugi.

The training involves about 30 aircraft from Carrier Air Wing 5.

“It is an indication we are getting ready to deploy but it’s not tied to a specific date,” said Lt. Cmdr. John Bernard, spokesman for Carrier Strike Group 5.

“Until we’re a certain number of hours away from pulling out, we do not comment on the ship’s comings or goings,” he added.

Navy pilots must practice night landings to maintain qualifications for carrier landings at sea, a dangerous and highly perishable skill, Navy officials said.

“It really is challenging for these guys,” Bernard said. Pilots must refresh their skills after a certain period of time, he said; they can’t go outside that training window “without becoming unsafe.”

“We understand there are concerns from many different communities,” Bernard said, “regarding noise, regarding safety, regarding actual need ... we do everything we can to mitigate those concerns.”

Steps taken to reduce noise on Atsugi-area residents, Navy officials said, include refraining from flight operations between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m., minimizing the use of afterburners, limiting the number of aircraft permitted in a flight pattern and refraining from conducting jet engine testing from 6 p.m. to 8 a.m.

Backup sites for the training, in the event of bad weather or other problems, are Misawa Air Base in northern Japan, NAF Atsugi, Yokota Air Base near Tokyo and Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. daily May 17-20. Bernard said alternate locations, if needed, are not prioritized and depend on weather, runway availability and other factors.