Okinawa Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan and has a population of 1,457,162 and a geographic area of 2,281 km2.
The Yokosuka MXY-7Ohka is a purpose-built, rocket-powered human-guided kamikaze attack aircraft employed by Japan against Allied ships towards the end of the Pacific War during World War II. Although extremely fast, the very short range of the Ohka meant that it had to be carried into action as a parasite aircraft by a much larger bomber, which was itself vulnerable to carrier-borne fighters. In action during the Battle of Okinawa in 1945, Ohkas were able to sink or damage some escort vessels and transport ships but no major warships were ever sunk. Improved versions which attempted to overcome the aircraft's shortcomings were developed too late to be deployed. Allied troops referred to the aircraft as "Baka Bombs".
The GBU-43/B Massive Ordinance Air Blast is a large-yield bomb, developed for the United States military by Albert L. Weimorts, Jr. of the Air Force Research Laboratory. It was first tested in 2003. At the time of development, it was said to be the most powerful non-nuclear weapon in the American arsenal. The bomb is designed to be delivered by a C-130 Hercules, primarily the MC-130E Combat Talon I or MC-130H Combat Talon II variants. The bomb's name and nickname were inspired by Iraqi president Saddam Hussein's invocation of the "mother of all battles" during the 1991 Gulf War.
The United States Forces Japan (USFJ) is a subordinate unified command of the United States Indo-Pacific Command. It was activated at Fuchū Air Station in Tokyo, Japan, on 1 July 1957 to replace the Far East Command. USFJ is headquartered at Yokota Air Base in Tokyo and is commanded by the Commander, US Forces Japan who is also commander of the Fifth Air Force.
During Operation Arc Light from 1965 to 1973, the United States Air Force deployed B-52 Stratofortresses from bases in the U.S. Territory of Guam to provide battlefield air interdiction during the Vietnam War. This included strikes at enemy bases, supply routes, and behind the lines troop concentrations, as well as occasionally providing close air support directly to ground combat operations in Vietnam.
Okinawa Island, officially Okinawa Main Island, is the largest of the Okinawa Islands and the Ryukyu (Nansei) Islands of Japan in the Kyushu region. It is the smallest and least populated of the five main islands of Japan. The island is approximately 106 kilometres (66 mi) long, an average 11 kilometres (7 mi) wide, and has an area of 1,206.98 square kilometers (466.02 sq mi). It is roughly 640 kilometres south of the main island of Kyushu and the rest of Japan. It is 500 km northeast of Taiwan. The total population of Okinawa Island is 1,384,762. The Greater Naha area has roughly 800,000 residents, while the city itself has about 320,000 people. Naha is the seat of Okinawa Prefecture on the southwestern part of Okinawa Island. Okinawa has a humid subtropical climate.
Marine Corps Air Station Futenma or MCAS Futenma is a United States Marine Corps base located in Ginowan, Okinawa, Japan, 5 NM northeast of Naha, on the island of Okinawa. It is home to approximately 3,000 Marines of the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing and other units, and has been a U.S. military airbase since the defeat of the Japanese Imperial Army in the Battle of Okinawa in 1945. Marine Corps pilots and aircrew are assigned to the base for training and providing air support to other land and sea-based Marines in Okinawa and throughout the Asia-Pacific region. MCAS Futenma is part of the Marine Corps Installations Pacific command.
The Type 91 was an aerial torpedo of the Imperial Japanese Navy. It was in service from 1931 to 1945. It was used in naval battles in World War II and was specially developed for attacks on ships in shallow harbours.
Kadena Air Base is a United States Air Force base in the towns of Kadena and Chatan and the city of Okinawa, in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. It is often referred to as the "Keystone of the Pacific" because of its highly strategic location. It is located 650 km (400 mi) off the coast of China and at a distance of 770 km (480 mi) from Shanghai, a major economic hub. It is home to the USAF's 18th Wing, the 353rd Special Operations Wing, reconnaissance units, 1st Battalion, 1st Air Defense Artillery Regiment, and a variety of associated units. Over 20,000 American servicemembers, family members, and Japanese employees live or work at Kadena Air Base. It is the largest and most active U.S. Air Force base in East Asia.
A general-purpose bomb is an air-dropped bomb intended as a compromise between blast damage, penetration, and fragmentation in explosive effect. They are designed to be effective against enemy troops, vehicles, and buildings.
The B-41 was a thermonuclear weapon deployed by the United States Strategic Air Command in the early 1960s. It was the most powerful nuclear bomb ever developed by the United States, with a maximum yield of 25 megatons of TNT. A top secret document, states “The US has stockpiled bombs of 9 MT and 23 MT...” which would likely be referring to the B-41's actual yield(s). The B-41 was the only three-stage thermonuclear weapon fielded by the U.S.
The Popeye is a family of air-to-surface missiles developed and in use by Israel, of which several types have been developed for Israeli and export users. A long-range submarine-launched cruise missile variant of the Popeye Turbo has been speculated as being employed in Israel's submarine-based nuclear forces. The United States operated the Popeye under a different designation according to US naming conventions as the AGM-142 Have Nap.
Operation Red Hat was a United States Department of Defense movement of chemical warfare munitions from Okinawa, Japan to Johnston Atoll in the North Pacific Ocean, which occurred in 1971.
Beginning in the mid-1930s, Japan conducted numerous attempts to acquire and develop weapons of mass destruction. The 1943 Battle of Changde saw Japanese use of both bioweapons and chemical weapons, and the Japanese conducted a serious, though futile, nuclear weapon program.
Okinawa City is the second-largest city in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan, following Naha, the capital city. It is located in the central part of the island of Okinawa, about 20 kilometres (12 mi) north of Naha. As of December 2012, the city has an estimated population of 138,431 and a population density of 2,625.12 persons per km². The total area is 49.00 km².
Bolo Airfield is a former World War II airfield at Naval Base Okinawa in Okinawa, at Bolo Point on the East China Sea coast. The airfield was inactivated after 1946 and returned to Japanese control in 1972. Currently, it is a part of Yomitan village, where it has been redeveloped into a golf course and recreation area.
The 1959 Okinawa F-100 crash, also known as the Miyamori Elementary School crash (宮森小学校米軍機墜落事故), occurred on June 30, 1959, when a North American F-100 Super Sabre of the United States Air Force crashed in Ishikawa, in United States-occupied Okinawa, killing 18 people.
The main island of Okinawa accounts for 0.6% of Japan's land mass, though about 75% of United States forces in Japan are stationed in the Okinawa prefecture, encompassing about 18% of the main island of Okinawa. Following the ratification of the revised U.S.-Japan Security Treaty in 1960, massive protests of US military presence in Okinawa followed across Japan with an estimated 30 million Japanese citizens participating, known in Japan as the Anpo protest movement. With such a strong focus of United States Forces Japan in Okinawa, residents face economic problems of the highest unemployment in Japan as well as struggle for investment from outside businesses. Immense public opposition in Okinawa is still met with difficulty to create change for Okinawan citizens, while 25,000 American troops remain in Okinawa.
Naval Base Okinawa, now Naval Facility Okinawa, is a number of bases built after the Battle of Okinawa by United States Navy on Okinawa Island, Japan. The naval bases were built to support the landings on Okinawa on April 1, 1945, and the troops fighting on Okinawa. The Navy repaired and did expansion of the airfields on Okinawa. United States Navy Seabees built or repaired the facilities on the island. The bases on Okinawa put the United States Armed Forces only 350 miles from Japan's home islands. Most facilities closed after the war, but some are still in use today by all branches of the United States Armed Forces.
