Japanese Jeep Carrier Izumo Commissioned

Japanese White Paper Outlines Industrial Side of F-35 Procurement

Japan’s annual defence whitepaper underlines the importance Tokyo places on the industrial participation aspects of the Lockheed Martin F-35A programme, and casts a wary eye on airpower developments in China.

The whitepaper, produced annually by the Ministry of Defense, touches on all aspects of Tokyo’s security situation, from the disruptive potential of non-state actors to challenges posed by major powers, namely China. It also outlines Tokyo’s plans for developing its combat capabilities and the importance of the country’s defence industry.

In regard to specific weapons programmes, the report places strong emphasis on Japan’s F-35A acquisition. It notes that Japanese companies have been working to develop the manufacturing processes related to Tokyo’s 2011 decision to obtain 42 F-35As.

“It is important for Japanese companies to participate in the manufacturing process and to come into contact with cutting edge fighter aircraft technology and knowledge in order to ensure safety and high operational availability, resulting in the safe and efficient management of [Japan Air Self Defense Force] F-35As,” says the report.

“Following discussions with related parties such as the U.S. government, the participation of Japanese companies in the final assembly and check out (FACO) for airframe and the manufacture of certain engine and radar parts was decided in FY2013. In FY2014, the companies plan to further participate in the manufacturing process, in the engine FACO and the production of parts within the infrared detection device, the electro-optical distributed aperture system (EODAS).”

Produced by Northrop Grumman, the EO/DAS system is a core element of the F-35, effectively giving the aircraft’s pilot 360 degree visibility of the battlespace.

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Japan Standing up Space Force by 2019

Japan is planning to launch a military space force by 2019 that would initially be tasked with protecting satellites from dangerous debris orbiting the Earth, a report said.

The move is aimed at strengthening Japan-US cooperation in space, and comes after the countries pledged to boost joint work on monitoring space debris, Kyodo news agency said Sunday.

Japan would provide the US military with information obtained by the force as part of the joint bid to strengthen ties in space, the so-called "fourth battlefield", Kyodo said, citing unnamed sources.

Japan's defence ministry is looking at creating the new force using personnel from the Air Self-Defence Force, the country's air force, it added.

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Japan Wants More F-35s

Japanese Defence Minister Itsunori Onodera on 8 July said Tokyo will consider buying additional Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighters should the cost of the aircraft come down.

"If each country expands manufacturing capability [of F-35s] and increases production volume, this leads to the reduction of the unit cost," Onodera told reporters after visiting Lockheed Martin's fighter production plant in Fort Worth, Texas. "In such a case, it's important to think twice about the total volume."

National broadcaster NHK reported that Onodera was told by Lockheed Martin officials that the company will begin assembling the first F-35s for Japan in August.

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Japan's ATD-X Stealth Fighter Prototype to Fly This Year

Japanese Defence Minister Itsunori Onodera has reaffirmed the nation's plan for a 2014 first flight of the Advanced Technology Demonstrator-X (ATD-X) fighter: a prototype for a future fighter to replace the Japan Air Self-Defence Force's Mitsubishi F-2.

"In February I myself visited at Mitsubishi Heavy Industries' (MHI's) Komaki Minami plant where the ATD-X is being built," Onodera told the Foreign Affairs and Defence Committee of the Upper House on 10 April. "There I was briefed that the first flight will take place this year."

The ATD-X, also known as Shinshin ('Heart of God'), is being developed by the ministry's Technical Research and Development Institute (TRDI), with the main contractor of the project being MHI. It has been designed to be a stealthy air-superiority fighter with enhanced manoeuvrability. The Japanese Ministry of Defence (MoD) will use it to research advanced technologies and system integration, after which it plans to produce a 'sixth-generation' fighter encompassing i3 (informed, intelligent and instantaneous) concepts and counter-stealth capabilities.

"Originally MHI planned to roll-out the ATD-X before the media in May, soon after Japan's Golden Week holidays, followed by the first test fight," an official at TRDI told IHS Jane's on 15 April. "Now it is several months behind schedule."

Onodera also said in the Diet that the MoD will decide by FY18 whether to build its future stealth fighter domestically or by international joint development, based on parameters such as technological achievements and cost effectiveness.

Japan's plans to develop an 'F-3' from the ADT-X could run into opposition from the United States, however, which has blocked Tokyo's attempts to develop an indigenous fighter in the past.

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Japan Developing Amphibious Assault Vehicle

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) has built a prototype for an amphibious vehicle, a spokesman told IHS Jane's on 8 April.

MHI - Japan's largest defence company - has conducted research and development into amphibious vehicles for some time, he said.

"It's true that we have built a prototype of an amphibious vehicle but it is at an early testing stage and is not complete," said the spokesman. "We are still in the process of trial and error through internal development; it's not a production order for the Ministry of Defense [MoD]."

The spokesman would not release details such as the vehicle's size and potential armament, but a source who has seen an image of the prototype told IHS Jane's that it was tracked and featured waterjets to aid propulsion at sea.

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Mitsubishi Heavy Industries in Negotiations for F-35 Workshare

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) is in negotiations with Lockheed Martin and BAE Systems over the supply of parts for the F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter aircraft programme, it has been confirmed to IHS Jane's .

Should an agreement be concluded, the deal would represent Japan's first involvement in an international military production programme. Japanese industry has long been banned from undertaking such activity, although the current government in Tokyo has shown a willingness to relax the restriction in a bid to enhance capabilities and industrial efficiency.

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Japan Reiterates Not Building, No Plans for Aircraft Carrier

The Japanese Ministry of Defence (MoD) has clarified that the country is currently not looking to acquire an aircraft carrier, nor is it exploring the possibility of operating one for the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF).

Speaking with IHS Jane's on 15 January, an MoD spokesperson denied Japanese media reports citing numerous unnamed MoD sources that claimed the JMSDF is considering building an aircraft carrier equipped with fighter aircraft. The spokesperson also reiterated the government's view on Article 9 of its Constitution that the Japanese Self-Defense Force (SDF) was not allowed to possess intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), long-range strategic bombers or offensive aircraft carriers.

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The Izumo class is NOT a carrier!  Really!  Believe us!  Because we said so!

If the Chinese get more aggressive I can see the Japanese buying F-35Bs...