The US Air Force sent F-15s based at Kadena AB, Japan, on the island of Okinawa to an Air Self Defense Force base in Japan to conduct training in what the Japan Times reports is the “start of reducing the strain on Okinawa of hosting the bulk of US bases in Japan.” Okinawa residents have protested what they say is excessive noise from current F-15 operations. They were not thrilled when USAF decided to send a cohort of F-22 Raptors to the island for a temporary engagement. US and Japanese officials reached agreement to transfer some training from Okinawa and Misawa AB, Japan, to several small home island JASDF bases.
B-52 Stratofortress bombers marked a new first in Operation Epic Fury when some of the BUFFs flew over Iran carrying JDAM-guided gravity bombs, according to people familiar with the matter. The development signals a weakening of Iranian air defenses and a new use for the venerable bomber in the nearly…