'Keystone of the Pacific' continue to showcase Air Power
 |
 |
On 20 and 21 April 2024, more F-22A Raptors arrived at Kadena Air Base (Japan). The latest 5th generation fighters flew from Langley AFB (VA) to the strategic situated island of Okinawa. The latest arrived Raptors from Langley's 1st Fighter Wing and will augment the Hawaii F-22As that arrived at the end of March.
On 10 April 2024, no less than eight F-16C Fighting Falcons, eleven F-22A Raptors, eleven F-35A Lightning IIs, one MC-130J Commando II, one RC-135W Rivet Joint, two KC-135R Stratotankers, one E-3G Sentry, one MQ-9 Reaper, one HH-60G Pave Hawk, one HH-60W Jolly Green II and one US Navy P-8A Poseidon gathered on runway '05L' at Kadena.
Strikingly, and not mentioned above, also taking part in the so called Elephant Walk, were four operational based ZZ coded F-15C legacy Eagles. The ZZ Eagles are now clearly a dying breed. At the beginning of March 2022, Scramble Magazine wrote about the 18th Wing and its residents. Since it was announced that the F-15C and D models would leave Kadena, multiple mixes of USAF fighters have been deployed to support Kadena's 18th Wing.
A few days before the aforementioned Elephant Walk, legacy Eagles from California Air National Guard's 194th Fighter Squadron 'Griffins' together with Louisiana Air National Guard's 122nd Fighter Squadron 'Bayou Militia' had left Kadena. After having been deployed for more than six months, the California and Louisiana Eagles have flown back to the Continental United States (CONUS). After the Elephant Walk, the dozen 4th Fighter Squadron and 356th Fighter Squadron F-35A Lightning IIs vacated Kadena back to their homebases Hill AFB (UT) and Eielson AFB (AK).
The following F-16C Fighting Falcons are now present at Kadena:
Credit photos: USAF
