Japan, U.S. conduct joint drills involving 52 aircraft
Baku, July 14, AZERTAC
Japan conducted large-scale joint exercises with the United States over nearby waters earlier this month involving a total of 52 aircraft, the Air Self-Defense Force said Thursday, amid intensifying maritime activities by China and Russia in the region, according to Kyodo News.
Including aircraft that flew several times, 20 ASDF fighter jets, 29 fighters and two warplanes of the U.S. Air Force, and a U.S. Navy patrol plane participated in the drills on July 6 as well as Monday and Tuesday over the Sea of Japan, the Pacific and the East China Sea, the ASDF said.
Aimed at enhancing the ASDF's "tactical technique and the capabilities of joint Japan-U.S. actions in response" to armed attacks, the joint drills were carried out following two exercises conducted by the allies in late June, according to the ASDF.
In a related move, patrol planes of Japan's Maritime Self-Defense Force and the U.S. Navy carried out a joint drill on Wednesday over waters near Japan's southwestern islands, the MSDF said.
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