An F-35A Lightning II assigned to the 355th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron lands at Kadena Air Base, Okinawa, April 3, 2025. (Melany Bermudez/U.S. Air Force)
Two Air Force fighter squadrons arrived at Kadena Air Base last week as part of the service’s ongoing rotational deployments to the home of the 18th Wing on Okinawa.
F-35A Lightning IIs with the 355th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron at Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska, and F-15E Strike Eagles with the 336th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, N.C., began landing at the base between Thursday and Sunday, the wing said in a statement Tuesday.
The deployments mark the latest in a series of rotations since the Air Force began phasing out Kadena’s aging F-15C/D fleet in late 2022.
An F-15E Strike Eagle assigned to the 336th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron lands at Kadena Air Base, Okinawa, April 6, 2025. (Karina Lopez/U.S. Air Force)
“The men and women of the 355th EFS are excited to be back at Kadena Air Base,” 355th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron commander Lt. Col. Erik Gonsalves said in the release. “I have spent the majority of my career in [Pacific Air Forces] and am looking forward to enhancing our squadron’s proficiency in the asymmetric advantages we share in this [area of operation].”
The Air Force did not disclose how many aircraft were deployed or how long they will remain. The 18th Wing acknowledged queries from Stars and Stripes on Monday and Tuesday but has not yet responded to questions about the deployment.
Col. David Deptula, commander of the 18th Operations Group, said the rotational deployments are key to maintaining readiness and deterrence in the region.
“Kadena’s commitment to regional deterrence is ironclad,” he said in the release. “Rotational aircraft are a normal part of Kadena’s operations, and their presence ensures the continuation of our long-standing mission to defend Japan and maintain an open and free Indo-Pacific.”
Since the withdrawal of the F-15C/Ds, Kadena has relied on a mix of fourth- and fifth-generation aircraft, including F-35As, F-22 Raptors and F-16 Fighting Falcons to carry out its air-defense mission.
The F-15E Strike Eagle, a two-seat, dual-role fighter introduced in 1988, is capable of long-range strike missions while defending itself against air threats, according to an Air Force fact sheet.
Strike Eagles from Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, N.C., and Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho, deployed to Kadena on a rotational basis in 2023.
The final operational flight of Kadena’s F-15C fleet in the Pacific took place Jan. 24, following a ceremonial sendoff last August.
In July, the Air Force announced plans to permanently base 36 F-15EX Eagle IIs at Kadena to replace the retired F-15C/D fleet. The new fighters are expected to begin arriving between March and June 2026, Brig. Gen. Nicholas Evans, commander of the 18th Wing, told reporters last month.
