Japan Military News, Reports, Data, etc.

ougoah said:

Unsinkable like the SCS islands but destroyable as well. I wonder how any fortified islands defends itself from tsunamis. Maybe choice of location minimises the risks.

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But the location is far from "ideal". I thought it'd be close to Okinawa. This island is just south of Nagasaki. That is a meh. Seems more like they have decided to have american military far away from their neighborhoods and towns. An island would be ideal. The Okinawan experience would be avoided.

Location of Mageshima Island.
What difference does it make ?

I know what i am going to say is "out there". But -
Japan is uncomfortable with the relation it has with tAmerica ( and the west). It shall not outright sell/lease any island as a whole to american military - especially an island that is too far away from the Japanese Main Islands. The Mageshima Island is so very close to the Main Islands ( and Japanese core region) and therefore the prospect of the Mageshima island indefinetly being in American hands is very less. Once Japan demands American forces to vacate from Mageshima, American forces would have no choice but to comply. Basically, Japan wouldn't be in a Guantanamo- Cuba - America type situation.

If USA is leased/ given an entire island that is far away from home, wouldn't Japan find it difficult to have US dust up and leave once it wishes so? What if US just said No ? What if US got too cozy with the new base? What if it demands that Japan adjust?
Maybe that is the reason Japan would not sell any islands far from Japanese Main islands. I could be wrong.

Xsizor said:

I know what i am going to say is "out there". But -
Japan is uncomfortable with the relation it has with tAmerica ( and the west). It shall not outright sell/lease any island as a whole to american military - especially an island that is too far away from the Japanese Main Islands. The Mageshima Island is so very close to the Main Islands ( and Japanese core region) and therefore the prospect of the Mageshima island indefinetly being in American hands is very less. Once Japan demands American forces to vacate from Mageshima, American forces would have no choice but to comply. Basically, Japan wouldn't be in a Guantanamo- Cuba - America type situation.

If USA is leased/ given an entire island that is far away from home, wouldn't Japan find it difficult to have US dust up and leave once it wishes so? What if US just said No ? What if US got too cozy with the new base? What if it demands that Japan adjust?
Maybe that is the reason Japan would not sell any islands far from Japanese Main islands. I could be wrong.

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Completely off.
The US military wanted a practice field closer to Iwakuni base where they are stationed. The former practice range was Iwojima which was just too far from to go and come back.

Japan is finally moving ahead with its new fighter according to a recent AWST report.

Japan will proceed with concept design of its Future Fighter in the coming fiscal year following finance ministry agreement to spend ¥11.1 billion ($110 million) on the work. The funding is part of a defense budget that will be 1.2% higher than for fiscal 2019.

The amount of spending on the Future Fighter suggests a greater effort than was put into concept designs earlier in this decade. The aircraft is intended to enter service in the 2030s and replace the Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) F-2.

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Seems like stealth has a universal design. K-FX, T-FX, AMCA, AZM, Shin Shen/ X-2... all of them copying the Lockheed Martin approach.

Hahaha now the China copycat crowd has nothing to say? I guess China is far closer to US military technology for being able to follow much closer? And before the "oh that's because they have started earlier with more funding" defence, well where was that line when J-20 and FC-31 came out? Results certainly follow funding and head starts but no amount of head start or funding can compensate for lack of ability.

Waiting for internet trolls to call the T-FX, K-FX, and X-2 as Lockheed Martin F-22/F-35 copies. Will never come. China-haters exposed again! China must be doing many things right then. Continue the march comrades!!!

Now actually being serious. I have little faith Japan will build their own 5th gen Mitsubishi fighter because they are going all in with F-35 and there's talk of cooperation with UK (Tempest program) or US - restarting F-22 or FB-22 program with customised Japanese 5th gen fighter that complement F-35. With these options probably having more chances of success since all the know how is there (at least for the Lockheed Martin option), meaning shorter development cycle, lower costs, greater capability.

As wealthy as Japan is, there are looming economic issues which may not even be solvable by Japan's population shrinkage which isn't going to be good for it either. I don't think Japan will be silly enough (India) to pursue a costly self-developed 5th gen fighter when they don't need to develop it themselves like China or Russia did.

I am quite disappointed with Japan's choice of Design for the F3. Japan is quite the technologically advanced country and has a reputation among others for being Tech-savvy and an advanced materials powerhouse. Its fighter design, though not necessary at all, ought to have reflected this reputation.Japan doesn't produce many designs due to post war situation but the F3 could've been a coming-out celebration.

Even the Iranian fighter Qaher 313 has a very distinct design ( whether its competent enough and actually flies is another question).
I am disappointed as I would have liked to see some new, out-of-the-box answers to the stealth fighter question.

ougoah said:

Seems like stealth has a universal design. K-FX, T-FX, AMCA, AZM, Shin Shen/ X-2... all of them copying the Lockheed Martin approach.

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I also noticed how closely KFX resembles F-22. One way to measure their creativity is the tail fin design. The Koreans are still copying the large, triangle, fixed, F-22 style while J20/F35 have adopted a smaller slanted design. I have a feeling Japan/Turkey/India will do the same if they design the jets themselves instead of buying from the US.

kurutoga said:

I also noticed how closely KFX resembles F-22. One way to measure their creativity is the tail fin design. The Koreans are still copying the large, triangle, fixed, F-22 style while J20/F35 have adopted a smaller slanted design. I have a feeling Japan/Turkey/India will do the same if they design the jets themselves instead of buying from the US.

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The canted Tail of J-20 are not similar to that of F35 as they are all moving. The F35, though canted, adopts the relatively simple and LO conscious rudder mechanism.
I do not think it is right to focus on tail design to gauge technological heft. The F-22 opts for a very prominent (large) area V tail to satisfy supermaneuverability.
The F-35 doesn't need it because it isn't Air Superiority focused. Both didn't choose to go with All moving stabilators as that would hamper LO performance.
I expect smaller nations with less developed Aeronautical industry to play it safe and go with the F35/F22 lane. I don't expect to see any unique tail designs.