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ASDF to deploy F-35 at Misawa base in late January
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180120_12/
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180120_12/
Japan's Air Self-Defense Force says it will deploy an F-35 stealth fighter later this month at its Misawa base in Aomori Prefecture, northeastern Japan.
It is the first of 42 F-35s to be delivered to the country. The advanced aircraft is Japan's next-generation mainstay fighter under a Defense Ministry plan.
The F-35 was jointly developed by the United States and 8 other countries. Its stealth capabilities make it difficult to detect by radar.
Each aircraft costs about 135 million dollars.
The Defense Ministry plans to deploy 9 more F-35s at Misawa by the end of fiscal 2018 that starts in April.
The ministry says it will fit the jets with the Norwegian-made Joint Strike Missile, or JSM, long-range cruise missile.