Japan opens Osprey base in southwestern prefecture

TOKYO -- Japan's Ground Self-Defense Force (GSDF) on Wednesday opened a new base in the southwestern prefecture of Saga to host its fleet of Osprey transport aircraft, local media reported.

The first V-22 Osprey arrived at the new camp in Saga Prefecture on the main island of Kyushu on Wednesday morning from Camp Kisarazu in Chiba Prefecture near Tokyo, Kyodo News reported.

The GSDF plans to transfer the remaining 16 Ospreys that are temporarily stationed at Camp Kisarazu to the new facility built west of Kyushu Saga International Airport in several waves by mid-August.

On Wednesday morning, protesters rallied in front of the new Camp Saga's main gate, carrying banners and signs to call for the "complete removal of Ospreys," the report said.

The US military also deploys Ospreys in Japan. The tilt-rotor transport aircraft has been involved in a series of major accidents. In November 2023, a US Osprey military aircraft crashed off the southwestern prefecture of Kagoshima during a routine training flight, killing all eight crew members.