About 10 Ospreys have been slated to operate out of Yokota starting in 2022, but on Tuesday US Forces Japan announced that five of the tilt-rotor aircraft would be arriving at the base by the end of the week.
— U.S. Forces Japan (@USForcesJapan) April 3, 2018
The CV-22 Ospreys are the Special Operations Forces' version of the US Marines Corps' MV-22. The vessel is capable of taking off vertically like a helicopter and titling its propellers mid-flight to fly like a fixed-wing aircraft.
"They will be at the home of the [US Air Force's] 374th Airlift Wing briefly before leaving to train around the region for the next few months," US Forces Japan announced on Tuesday.
After training around the region, the CV-22s will return to Yokota Air Base where they will be stationed for several years, according to USFJ.
The MV-22 has already been stationed on Japanese territory, on the southern island of Okinawa. The aircraft has stirred controversy due to a track record of crashing and other miscues in Japan. The Japanese foreign and defense ministries said in a joint statement Tuesday that Tokyo and Washington will "work together to give maximum consideration of safety and minimize the effects on local communities."
