Air Force and Army personnel worked with their Japanese counterparts to coordinate ground operations and control airspace during Exercise Yama Sakura 63 at Yokota AB, Japan. The exercise, which ran from Dec. 6 to Dec. 13, marked the first time that personnel from both nations utilized the new Bilateral Air Operations Coordination Center of the Japan Air Self Defense Force’s Air Defense Command, according to Yokota’s Dec. 18 release. “The exercise was extremely successful,” said Col. Stephen Meyers, commander of the Army’s 5th Battlefield Coordination Detachment. He added, “We gave the [joint forces air component commander] a comprehensive picture of both air and ground operations.” The US airmen and soldiers exchanged ideas, tactics, and techniques with the Japanese personnel during the exercise. ADC moved its headquarters from Fuchu Air Base to Yokota, and began operations there in March, to improve bilateral contingency planning, training, and intelligence sharing with 5th Air Force. (Yokota report by Capt. Cody Chiles)
Air Force Eyes New-Build F-16s to Boost Fighter Force
Sept. 16, 2026
The Air Force will consider acquiring new F-16 Fighting Falcon jets to answer capacity shortfalls in its aging fighter fleet, according to multiple people familiar with the matter. These discussions are happening as the Air Force is building its proposed fiscal 2028 budget and the five-year spending plan that goes…
