A U.S. Air Force F-16 Fighting Falcon lands during a public flight demostration at Misawa Air Base, Japan, Sept. 11, 2022. (Leon Redfern/U.S. Air Force)
The 35th Fighter Wing on Friday denied reports that an Air Force fighter jet’s precautionary landing disrupted a commercial flight in northeastern Japan days earlier.
One of the wing’s F-16 Fighting Falcons landed at Misawa Air Base in Aomori prefecture on Wednesday due to an in-flight “equipment indication,” according to an email from wing spokesman Capt. LeeRoy Stark.
Misawa — a joint Air Force and Japan Air Self-Defense Force installation — shares its runway with commercial aircraft.
A Japan Airlines flight bound for Osaka was delayed approximately 45 minutes after the F-16 landed around 11:30 a.m., a Tohoku Defense Bureau spokesman said by phone Friday. It’s customary in Japan that some government officials speak to the media without providing their names.
The bureau — an arm of Japan’s Ministry of Defense — protested the landing and requested Misawa’s commander, Col. Paul Davidson, provide additional information and ensure aircraft are properly maintained and inspected, the spokesman said.
Aomori prefecture issued a statement Thursday asking both the base and the defense bureau to prevent future incidents.
“We are aware that this incident causes anxiety to the residents of the prefecture,” the statement added.
However, Stark said the commercial flight delay was unrelated to the fighter jet.
“After landing, and in accordance with our strict safety procedures, the aircraft temporarily halted on a taxiway that did not intersect with, or obstruct, the commercial aircraft movement area,” he wrote.
Stark added that the delay was caused by a late flight plan submission by a civilian organization and was not connected to military operations, citing airfield operations and air traffic control personnel.
“The 35th Fighter Wing remains committed to transparency and safe, cooperative use of our shared runway,” he wrote. “We value our relationship with our Japanese counterparts and our local community, and we appreciate the ongoing partnership that enables us to support the shared vision of a free and open Indo-Pacific region.”
In a separate incident, two U.S. Marine Corps F-35B Lightning II stealth fighters made a precautionary landing at Nyutabaru Air Base around 10 p.m. Tuesday, a Kyushu Defense Bureau spokesman said by phone Friday.
The base, operated by the Air Self-Defense Force, is in Miyazaki prefecture on Kyushu, the southernmost of Japan’s four main islands.
The F-35Bs are assigned to Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 214 at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Ariz., and have been operating out of Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, south of Hiroshima, as part of the Unit Deployment Program, the spokesman said.
There were no reports of injuries or damage, he said, adding that the incident’s cause was not immediately known.
A U.S. C-130 transport aircraft arrived at the base around 6:30 p.m. Wednesday and remained for approximately 30 minutes in support of the jets, which departed the following morning, the spokesman said.
The incident occurred during routine training, 1st Lt. Brady Mallory, spokesman for Marine Aircraft Group 12, said by email Friday.
“The pilots executed established safety protocols to ensure a controlled and safe landing,” he said. “The safety of our aircrew and the communities in which we operate remains a top priority.”
