F-22s, F-15s Rotate in at Kadena to Bolster Pacific Airpower

Squadrons of F-22 Raptors and F-15C Eagles have arrived at Kadena Air Base, Japan, for temporary deployments as the critical Pacific base awaits its permanent F-15EX fighters.

Stars & Stripes reported Oct. 27 that a squadron of F-22s from Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, finished arriving Sept. 30. Another squadron of F-15s, from Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base New Orleans, La., also recently arrived, Stripes reported, citing a statement from the 18th Wing at Kadena.

The 18th Wing did not immediately respond to a query from Air & Space Forces Magazine. But independent aircraft trackers and photographs published by the military show those planes arriving at or operating from Kadena recently.

Kadena, located on Okinawa, is the U.S.’s closest air base to Taiwan and strategically vital.

The 18th Wing at Kadena flew squadrons of permanently assigned F-15C/D fighters for years. But those legacy fighters were rapidly aging, and in November 2022, the Air Force started withdrawing them. Those fighters will be replaced with 36 permanently assigned F-15EX Eagle II jets, beginning in fiscal 2027.

Until then, the service is rotating various fighters, including F-35s, F-22s, F-16s, and F-15 variants through Kadena on a temporary basis, to maintain the base’s ability to project airpower if necessary.

The first F-15EXs had been scheduled to arrive by now, but labor disputes and other challenges slowed Boeing’s deliveries and delayed plans. The first F-15EX earmarked for Kadena left Boeing’s St. Louis factory Aug. 28, and flew to Portland, Ore., for final systems integration, software updates, and other technical preparations. After that work is done, the jet will fly to Okinawa.

Photos posted by the 18th Wing on Oct. 27 show the Alaska F-22s at Tsuiki Air Base, Japan, taking part in Exercise Keen Sword 27, which aims to improve how U.S. and Japanese forces work together.

Aircraft trackers have also observed F-15 movements to Kadena in recent weeks.

Aviation enthusiast Aux OSINT on Oct. 24 and 25 posted flight tracker images on social media of KC-46 Pegasus tankers flying Coronet missions with F-15Cs from the 122nd, inbound to Kadena. 

A Japan-based aviation photographer who posts online under the handle Okadna35 posted images Oct. 24 of F-15s arriving at Kadena, bearing markings of the New Orleans base’s 159th Fighter Wing, nicknamed the Bayou Militia.