Japan’s parliament has approved a Y4.98 trillion ($42 billion) defence budget for FY2015, with a strong emphasis on new airpower capabilities.
The budget, posted on the web site of Japan’s defence ministry, is 2.8% higher than in FY2014, and sets a new record for Japanese defence spending.
It contains funding for several major aircraft programmes, notably 20 Kawasaki P-1 maritime patrol aircraft.
The budget will also see the radar and infrared sensors carried by the nation’s Lockheed Martin P-3C Orion aircraft upgraded, as well as service life extensions for three P-3Cs.
It also includes funding for five Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey aircraft, which will be part of a new amphibious capability modelled on the US Marine Corps.
Tokyo continues to place a premium on high-end intelligence surveillance & reconnaissance (ISR) platforms.
The budget includes improvements on one Boeing E-767 airborne early warning & control (AEW&C) aircraft, as well as the acquisition of one Northrop Grumman E-2D.
There is also funding toward Tokyo’s eventual procurement of the Northrop Grumman MQ-4 Global Hawk, but it does not specify a specific variant or the number of aircraft it plans to obtain.
Tokyo’s fighter fleet also gets a boost, with funding for six Lockheed Martin F-35As, the modernisation of eight F-15s, and improvements to nine Mitsubishi F-2 fighters.
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