F-22 Raptors from the 27th Fighter Squadron at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Va., fly in formation during a training sortie over Georgia, Sept. 14, 2023. (Matthew Coleman-Foster/U.S. Air Force)
Another contingent of F-22 Raptors have landed on Okinawa as part of an Air Force plan to replace retired F-15 Eagles with frequent rotations of temporary replacement fighters.
Six Raptors from the 27th Fighter Squadron at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Va., arrived Saturday to support the ongoing return of F-15C/D Eagles to the United States, a spokeswoman for the 18th Wing, Master Sgt. Natasha Stannard, said by email Tuesday.
The 27th joins the 199th and 19th Fighter Squadrons already at Kadena Air Base since March 28, along with other fourth- and fifth-generation fighters, including F-35A Lightning IIs, deployed there.
“The continued deployment of the U.S. Air Force’s fifth generation fighters to Kadena Air Base represents our nation’s enduring commitment to the defense of Japan and wider regional security,” Stannard said.
The Defense Department in December 2022 announced a plan to retire or reassign two squadrons of aging F-15C/Ds at Kadena. Until it decides on a permanent replacement, the Air Force said it will rotate fighter squadrons through Kadena — what it calls the keystone of the Pacific — situated near Taiwan and the East and South China seas.
Since then, squadrons of F-35As from Alaska, F-16CM Fighting Falcons from Germany, F-15Cs from California and Louisiana and F-15E Strike Eagles from North Carolina and Idaho have served at Kadena.
Neither the Air Force nor DOD has announced plans for a new, permanent fighter presence on Okinawa.
“The Department of Defense will continue to use the Global Force Management process to provide backfill solutions that maintain regional deterrence and bolster our ability to uphold our treaty obligations to Japan,” Stannard said.
Some F-15s from Kadena went to Air National Guard units in the U.S. or to the Air Force boneyard at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Ariz.
More than 100 aircraft are positioned at Kadena, either deployed or permanently stationed, all performing a wide range of functions.
