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flyzies said:

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Japan air force chief faces sack


The head of the Japanese air force is to be sacked after saying the country was not an aggressor in World War II, Japan's defence minister said.

Yasukazu Hamada said Gen Toshio Tamogami's views, written in an essay, ran counter to the government's position on the war.

"Therefore it is inappropriate for him to remain in this position," he told a news conference.

The general's views are likely to anger many of Japan's neighbours.

China, North and South Korea and other Asian nations still have traumatic memories of Japan's aggression and colonial rule.

"What he said was inappropriate for an air chief of staff," said Mr Hamada.

"He should not remain in the job."

Gen Tamogami, 60, is chief of staff of Japan's Air Self-Defence Force.

In his essay on the theme of "true views of modern history", he wrote: "Even now, there are many people who think that our country's 'aggression' caused unbearable suffering to the countries of Asia during the Greater East Asia War.

"But we need to realise that many Asian countries take a positive view of the Greater East Asia War.

"It is certainly a false accusation to say that our country was an aggressor nation."

World War II in the Asia-Pacific region is referred to as the Greater East Asia War by those who saw it as Asian nations seeking independence from Western powers.

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yehe said:

Although this incident seems to confirm US's hold over Japan since the end of WW2 is still valid even now.

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Japan is making a final push to buy the Lockheed Martin F-22 from the USA, and its defence minister has confirmed that Tokyo will consider alternatives including non-US fighters if the attempt fails.

"We are still seeking the possibility of acquiring the F-22, but if that does not work out, we will have to consider not just the [Lockheed] F-35, but others as options," Yasukazu Hamada told the Kyodo News Agency. "As of today, we still want to seek the F-22."

Within Washington, there are fresh calls to sell a fighter that Congress has barred from export due to its classified technology. US senator Daniel Inouye, who heads the Senate Appropriations Committee, supports a sale to Japan, the USA's closest military ally in east Asia.

In a recent letter to the Japanese ambassador, Inouye reportedly revealed that an export version of the F-22, which will come without the most sensitive technology, could cost $250 million. This includes the cost of developing an export model, something that would take up to five years. Deliveries would begin seven to nine years after a contract is signed, according to the US Air Force estimate.

Japan has said that it wants to buy 50 fighters as part of its F-X requirement to replace its McDonnell Douglas F-4s, and the total bill for a Raptor acquisition could total $12.5 billion. Some observers, however, believe that Tokyo could go for fewer aircraft if it buys the F-22.

The unit cost would be much higher than the $150 million that the USAF paid for each aircraft in its last batch of four F-22s. US defence secretary Robert Gates said in April that the Department of Defense would halt production of the Raptor at 187 aircraft after ordering four more in fiscal year 2009.

Observers say that an export deal would allow Lockheed to keep its production line open and give Washington the option of buying additional F-22s in the future if it changes its mind.

Gates, however, opposes the sale and believes that Japan should instead consider the F-35, which has less stealth capability. The Pentagon, reiterating that US laws do not allow F-22 exports, adds: "That's why the secretary made the further point to his Japanese counterpart that the F-35 is the plane which we are pursuing and the plane that we would recommend the Japanese focus their efforts in terms of procuring in the future."

Apart from the F-22 and F-35, Tokyo has also asked for information on Boeing's F-15SE and F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, and the Eurofighter Typhoon as part of its F-X process. It could choose one of these as an interim solution in the event of delays to the Joint Strike Fighter.

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Mr T said:

Further to my last post on Japan's F-X project, it looks like the final push for the F-22 is happening.

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I think we can all agree it's very unlikely a deal for even an "export version" of the F-22 could take place, so it boils down to the other competitors. I doubt it will take Japan that long to make a choice once it gives up on the Raptor.

So the only question is, what would be best for the ASDF out of the remaining planes? I'm not sure how the F-4EJ can soldier on, so even with a decision delayed it's unclear whether the F-35 would be available. Quite a few countries are ahead of Japan in the queue already.

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Ambivalent said:

No queue for the Japanese. They build copies of US fighters like the F-15 at home.

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The Aussies have been lobbying for them too.

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Ambivalent said:

Wouldn't surprise me to see the JASDF buy or license build some Silent Eagles as a stop gap.

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Strategy Page said:

Scorned Japan Turns To The Familiar F-2

July 28, 2010: Unable to buy the American F-22, and wary of the continuing delays (and rising costs) of the F-35 program, Japan has decided to buy another 50 locally made F-2s. This is a Japanese F-16 variant, with a 25 percent larger wing area and better electronics. The 22 ton F-2 carries nearly nine tons of bombs, has a top speed of 2,100 kilometers an hour, and a combat radius of 1,000 kilometers. This plane is twice as expensive (at $110 each) as the F-16, and part of that is due to the better electronics (like an AESA radar) but mostly this is due to higher production costs in Japan. The F-2 has been in service since 2000 and 98 have been built so far.

The F-2 pilots are well trained, although it wasn’t until three years ago that an F-2 was able to drop live bombs. This was because Japan has no training facility in its own territory for live bombings. Thus it's only when Japanese warplanes are flown to foreign training areas, that they can they practice using real bombs. For this practice bombing, the Japanese F-2 aircraft flew to an American air base in Guam, in the Central Pacific.

This Japanese policy is nothing new. In the last sixty years, there have been only three times where Japanese warplanes dropped live munitions. The rest of the time, they practice with inert munitions, and simulated (by computer) bombs. Japanese aircraft have not been in combat since World War II, so there's no way of knowing if their training practices have had an adverse effect on combat effectiveness.

Japan is concerned with the growing belligerence of China and North Korea, plus a simmering territorial dispute with Russia. So more warplanes are needed, just in case.

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