An MQ-9 Reaper assigned to the 319th Expeditionary Reconnaissance Squadron taxis on the flightline at Kadena Air Base, Okinawa, Oct. 13, 2023. (Tylir Meyer/U.S. Air Force)
The Air Force is investigating how an unmanned aerial vehicle rolled off a runway while taxiing Monday at Kadena Air Base on Okinawa, according to the 18th Wing.
An MQ-9 Reaper deployed to the base was towed back to a protected aircraft shelter after the incident, wing spokeswoman Maj. Alli Stormer said in an email Tuesday. No injuries were reported.
“A thorough investigation will be conducted to determine the cause,” she wrote.
The Okinawa Defense Bureau, an arm of Japan’s Ministry of Defense, said the Reaper stopped on the south runway at 9:20 a.m. Emergency vehicles were seen gathering around the aircraft, a bureau spokesman said by phone Tuesday.
“We are confirming details of this incident with the U.S. military,” he said. “We will share information with related municipalities after hearing from them. We will continue dealing with this matter appropriately.”
Some Japanese government officials speak to the press only on condition of anonymity.
White smoke was spotted near the aircraft’s engine after it stopped, and it was towed to a hangar around 1 p.m., Japanese public broadcaster NHK reported Tuesday, citing a camera it installed near the base.
The wing did not identify the Reaper’s squadron. In November, it said Reapers from the Air Force’s 319th Expeditionary Reconnaissance Squadron were operating from Kadena. Eight Air Force Reapers moved to Kadena in late 2023 from Kanoya Air Base on Kyushu.
MQ-9A Reapers with Marine Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Squadron 3 from Marine Corps Base Hawaii are deployed to Okinawa, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing spokesman Maj. Joseph Butterfield said in an email Tuesday.
The aircraft “provide real-time situational awareness to U.S. Marines, the Joint Force, and regional allies in support of mutual defense,” he wrote.
Butterfield declined to say how many were deployed to Okinawa, citing security reasons. The defense bureau in August said fewer than six Marine Reapers were at Kadena.
The Reaper, made by General Atomics of San Diego, is a medium-altitude, long-endurance aircraft used primarily for surveillance, according to the Air Force. It may also carry Hellfire missiles and Paveway laser-guided bombs and costs $56.5 million each.
