A pair of Japanese F-35A Lightning II fighter jets are in Australia’s Northern Territory on their first international mission, the Australian Department of Defence announced Monday.
The stealth aircraft, along with 55 Japanese airmen, flew nearly 4,000 miles from Japan to Royal Australian Air Force Base Tindal, according to a department news release.
The fifth-generation fighters arrived Saturday and will depart Tuesday, the statement said.
“Australia is honored to be chosen as the destination for Japan’s first international deployment of its F-35As,” Australian Defence Department secretary Greg Moriarty said in the release. “This is a significant milestone in the relationship between our two countries, and is the first activity to be held under the Reciprocal Access Agreement.”
A Japan Air Self-Defense Force F-35A Lightning II lands at Royal Australian Air Force Base Tindal in the Northern Territory, Saturday, Aug. 26, 2023. (Australia's Department of Defence)
The recent agreement allows training by troops from Japan and Australia in each other’s territory.
RAAF Tindal hosted a dozen U.S. Marine Corps F-35B short-takeoff, vertical-landing fighters from Marine Fighter Attack Squadrons 121 and 242 during last summer’s biennial Pitch Black exercise. Based at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan, they were the first Marine F-35s to operate from Australian soil, although F-35s had flown from ships off Australia’s coast since 2019.
Multimillion-dollar upgrades are underway at RAAF Tindal to accommodate rotations of U.S. Air Force B-52 bombers during the southern hemisphere winter.
Just over 200 miles’ drive south of Darwin, in an expanse of red soil and gum trees, RAAF Tindal is home to F-35As from Australia’s No. 75 Squadron and is one of only two bases with a unit of the country’s newest fighters.
Australia is acquiring 72 F-35As from U.S. defense contractor Lockheed Martin, according to the Australian air force.
Japanese F-35As are based at Misawa Air Base in Aomori prefecture, northeastern Japan.
Japan plans to acquire 105 F-35As and 42 F-35Bs; the latter will operate from the helicopter carriers JS Izumo and JS Kaga, which are being upgraded to support them.
Serizawa Kiyoshi, Japan’s vice minister of defense for international affairs, and Ambassador to Australia Suzuki Kazuhiro visited RAAF Tindal as guests of Australia’s air force chief Air Marshal Robert Chipman, according to the Australian Department of Defence news release.
“This visit to Australia will build closer working-level relationships between our respective air forces, and enhance our mutual ability to cooperate in the Indo-Pacific region,” Chipman said in the release.
Lt. Col. Kazuhito Okamoto, commander of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force's 301st Squadron, gives a coin to Cmdr. Martin Parker, leader of the No.75 Squadron, at Royal Australian Air Force Base Tindal, Australia, Saturday, Aug. 26, 2023. (Australia's Department of Defence)
Australia looks forward to future visits by the Japanese jets, he added.
“Developing our mutual understanding, especially in how we each operate the F-35A, is essential to how Australia and Japan contribute to the collective security of the Indo-Pacific,” he said.
Next month, Australia’s air force will send six of its F-35As to Japan to participate in the Bushido Guardian exercise, Moriarty said.
