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The F-22 is expected to star at Avalon. "This is a special aircraft and we have been trying to get it to Avalon for many years," Airshow CEO Ian Honnery said. "It is really exciting that at long last we will be able to host for the Australian public to see for the first time." The F-22 on display at Avalon is expected to come from the Elmendorf,Alaska based F-22 currently deployed to Kadena,Japan. "avalon 2011 will be the largest show we have put on to date, with so many aircraft being exhibited, thatwe have had to extend our aircraft...

Reservists assigned to the 477th Fighter Group deployed this week to support the U.S. Pacific Command commander's Theater Security Package program in the Western Pacific. The 20 maintainers and eight pilots along with the 3rd Wing's 525th Fighter Squadron will be deployed to Kadena Air Base, Japan for three months. "The 477th Fighter Group reservists operate and maintain 3rd Wing aircraft under the Classic Associate Unit Construct, integrating with the 525th Fighter Squadron and 525th Aircraft Maintenance Unit," said Air Force Lt. Col. David Piffarerio, 302nd Fighter Squadron commander. "During normal training there is seamless integration with the active-duty squadrons,...

Twelve F-15s and about 180 Kadena Airmen are wrapping up two weeks of bilateral training with Japan Air Self Defense Force members at Chitose Air Base in northern Japan. The aviation training relocation program is designed to increase operational readiness and interoperability between U.S. and Japanese forces while reducing the impact of training on local communities surrounding Kadena. The current ATR mission has been the largest and longest since the initiative began in 2007. The JASDF's 2nd Wing at Chitose Air Base in Hokkaido, flies many aircraft including F-15s. Working side-by-side Kadena Airmen, mostly from the 44th Fighter Squadron, have...

Boeing and U.S. Air Force officials at Kadena Air Base celebrated the arrival of four F-15Cs upgraded with the APG-63(V)3 Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar on Oct. 21. The newly arrived F-15Cs will join the APG-63(V)1 and (V)2 aircraft already in the 44th and 67th Fighter Squadrons to provide unmatched combat power for the defense of Japan. The upgrades were installed and tested at Langley Air Force Base, Va. Boeing is under contract to fully upgrade 27 Air Force and 18 Air National Guard F-15C/D aircraft with the APG-63(V)3 AESA over the next 10 months. A total of 54...

The Chinese military’s nonnuclear missiles have “the capability to attack” and close down five of six major U.S. Air Force bases in South Korea and Japan, an unpublished government report says. China’s improved inventory of short- and medium-range missiles provides a “dramatic increase” in its ability to stifle U.S. military operations in the western Pacific, according to excerpts from the draft of the 2010 annual report that the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission is scheduled to release on Nov. 17. China’s current force “may be sufficient” to destroy runways, parked aircraft, fuel and maintenance facilities at Osan and Kunsan...

Boeing [NYSE: BA] and U.S. Air Force officials at Kadena Air Base celebrated the arrival of four F-15Cs upgraded with the APG-63(V)3 Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar on Oct. 21. The newly arrived F-15Cs will join the APG-63(V)1 and (V)2 aircraft already in the 44th and 67th Fighter Squadrons to provide unmatched combat power for the defense of Japan. The upgrades were installed and tested at Langley Air Force Base, Va. Boeing is under contract to fully upgrade 27 Air Force and 18 Air National Guard F-15C/D aircraft with the APG-63(V)3 AESA over the next 10 months. A total...

Google supplied satellite photos recently revealed something the American military uses to help morale, but that they would rather keep secret. In this case it was a Batman style bat symbol painted on the roof of a hanger in a U.S. airbase (Kadena Air Force Base in Japan). There are actually a lot of these roof paintings, usually representing the squadron (the Batman symbol was for a fighter squadron known as the vampire bats.) Now that the pictures of this custom has gone viral, many more people will check Google Earth pictures of military bases, and publicize what they find....

U.S. and South Korean forces said they are ready to repel any threat posed by North Korea as 24 stealth fighter jets deploy to the region and a report said the military alert level has been raised. Naval vessels plan anti-submarine exercises close to the disputed maritime border between North and South Korea where one of the South’s warships sank on March 26, killing 46 sailors. An international team of experts last week concluded that a North Korean torpedo blew apart the Cheonan, prompting Kim Jong Il’s regime to cut all ties with the South and threaten “all-out war” over...

The U.S. Air Force is scheduled to deploy F-22A Raptors to Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, and Kadena Air Base, Japan, in late May for approximately four months. Twelve F-22As will deploy from Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Va., to Andersen AFB and another 12 will deploy from Holloman AFB, N.M., to Kadena AB. Approximately 250 Airmen will accompany the Raptors to each location. The F-22A is a transformational combat aircraft that can avoid enemy detection, cruises at supersonic speeds, is highly maneuverable, and provides the joint forces an unprecedented level of integrated situational awareness. As part of continuing force posture adjustments...