Japan Air Self-Defence Force F-35A/B Delivered

The first three Japanese F-35B short take-off and vertical landing fighters arrived at Nyutabaru Air Base in Miyazaki Prefecture. Japan is acquiring 42 F-35Bs to operate from the converted helicopter destroyers Izumo and Kaga, giving the country fixed-wing carrier aviation for the first time since 1945. Nyutabaru serves as the shore base for the type while the ships complete their conversion. A second batch of two aircraft followed in October, and the JMSDF revealed the upgraded Izumo flight deck in 2026.