Kansai Airport Closed Due to Super Typhoon

 Sankei Shimbun

Typhoon Hit Kansai Airport Suspends Operations; Connecting Bridge Collided by a Tanker

4 September 2018

Western Japan was hit by a strong typhoon on Tuesday and Kansai International Airport reported a flooding at its passenger terminal, apron and a runway. The airport built on reclaimed island was hit by high wave and heavy rain as the typhoon, one of the largest scale in recent years, passed the Osaka Bay area in daytime Tuesday. Water as deep as tens of centimeters covered the airport's critical area and the Airport operations stopped since afternoon Tuesday and the administration admitted it would be rather hard to resume all operations on September 5.

To worsen the situations, a tanker hit the connecting bridge to the airport in late afternoon on Tuesday, making the airport isolated from main land.

SS Houun  Maru, 2,590 tons, hit the bridge on 1:32 pm local time as it lost its control by high waves. There was no injury to its crew of 11. The tanker had been anchored nearby the airport after unloading jet fuel at receiving pier of the airport.

Imagery right after the collision shows motor road section of the bridge was damaged. There is also a report a girder of the bridge was hit as well.

Since Kansai Airport needs this bridge, both motorways and railroad, for access from and to the mainland, this accident may further delay resumption of normal operations at least until Japanese authorities finish a field investigation. There is fast boat connection between the Airport and Kobe that has been suspended its service due to rough seas on Tuesday.

Double-punched Kansai Airport needs to keep everything under control as soon as possible to resume its everyday operations. ■

UPDATE:　The damaged connecting bridge still keeps half of four lanes for motor traffic. However, traffic is still being closed due to weather conditions and the investigation by authorities should be finished first.

UPDATE: Reportedly almost 3,000 people are being confined in the airport island as the traffic is not available as of 10 pm JST, September 4.

New Air Force One of Japan Arrives at Chitose

Recapping Japanese Air Force One: Enter 777-300ERs, Exit 747-400s

JASDF welcomes your ideas on how to make use of retired aircraft

Asahi Shimbun

From various domestic reporting,

First example of a pair of new Boeing 777-300ERs ordered by the government of
Japan (GOJ) has arrived at  Shin Chitose Airport, Hokkaido, on August 17.
The aircraft will undergo an official commissioning ceremony at the adjacent
Chitose Air Base of the Japan Air Self Defense Force (JASDF) followed by
preparations for its full-fledged operations from April 2019 including pilots and
crew training.

The new aircraft features a new lively inspired from the national flag of Japan,
with air stream red line painted on white airframe and big circle of red on vertical
wing. Another example will arrive to Japan by December.

In 2013 GOJ started replacement of current pair of Boeing 747-400s that started
operations in 1993.  In the following year, it was downselected to a pair of Boeing
777-300ERs. Estimated cost of JPY37 billion a piece, the new GOJ exclusive
aircraft fleet will show better fuel economy and extended range to carry such VIPs as
the Emperor, prime ministers and such for their overseas trips. As there is no
operator of passenger 747s in Japan and there will be no place for maintenance of
Boeing 747s in Japan after 2019, GOJ had tochoose a new aircraft to replace the
747s.

Maintenance of the new fleet is contracted to ANA instead of Japan Air Lines that
currently is designated for the Boeing 747-400s.

#1 aircraft was assembled in Seattle, Washington and underwent its interior work
by Jet Aviation in Basel, Switzerland.

As the current fleet of Boeing 747-400s. 20-1011 and 20-1012, will cease operations
by the end of March 2019, JASDF has started request for information on how to
make use of the aircraft after their retirement. GOJ acquired the two aircraft in the
early 1990s with JPY 36 billion. The fleet logged over 16,000 flight hours by
supporting Japanese diplomacy since then.

As they are the very first aircraft for exclusive use of GOJ, they have historical
value and known for their contribution to Japan.

JASDF held a briefing session for interested parties to make use of the 747s after
the retirement where over 15 corporations and organizations took part in. RFI will
be closed on August 24 and JASDF is reportedly to finalize its plans.

Some of retired JASDF aircraft have been preserved and exhibited at JASDF
museum in Hamamatsu Air Base and other places. But they huge birds. Since
the 747s have been based on Chitose Air Base, its home town Chitose city
sought after a chance to preserve the aircraft but it gave up the idea after
knowing it takes over JPY 100 million annually for its maintenance.

JASDF welcomes your innovative plans and proposals. ■

Feb 27, 2018: Japan Succeeds to Launch New Spy Satellite

H2A#38 just launched with information gathering satellite ‘Optical #6’, 1:34pm, JST, Tanegashim Space Center, Kagoshima　

H2A rocket #38 was launched 1:34 Japan Standard Time, February 27 with information gathering satellite optics #6 from Tanegashima Space Cener, Kagoshima southern Japan.  The satellite successfully entered scheduled orbit.  The satellite would help to monitor North Korea’s nuclear and missile development from space.

Optics satellite #6 will replace #4 that still functioning after its designed life and it carries sensors effective to photograph daytime.

It is reportedly to have resolution of about 30 cm to distinguish types of automobiles, twice resolution of satellite #4 with 60cm resolution.

Total development cost of the new satellite is about 30.7 billion JPY (about 290 million USD)and launch cost is about 11 billion JPY(103 million USD).

Japan operates two optic satellites and four radar satellites and tries to keep eyes over North Korea to photograph that country once a day at least.

In order to monitor North Korean military facilities more ,GOJ is trying to increase the number of satellites to ten, consisting of 4 optical and radar satellites each and two relaying satellites so that it becomes possible to monitor North Korea once in every 12 hours.

Gathered information is classified for security reason but GOJ released degraded photographs of natural disasters in Japan including heavy rain in northern Kyushu of last July and Mt. Shirane that erupted in January.

H2A, with this launching, made 32 consecutively successful launching with record of success at 97.3%.

Narit Air Control Radio Jammed by China; North Korea also Jamming Their Unfavorable Radio Show from Japan

Sankei Shimbun reported on February 16, 2018 that China and North Korea have tried to jam radio communication especially air traffic control and some flight departing or landing at Narita Airport have been affected several times.

Japanese government requested to Chinese government to get rid off the interference while reporting to ITU about North Korean attempts as Japan has no diplomatic relations with that country.

One such a case was May 2016, when jamming was directly aimed at air traffic radio communication between control tower of Narita and aircraft.  The same frequency of radio wave was beamed and the Narita tower switched to other frequency to avoid danger.

North Korea, too, beamed a similar jamming radio wave toward aviation traffic communication of Narita.  Those jamming from the two countries may disturb radio communication with fishing vessels in distant seas from Japan.

International Monitoring Network

To counter with those jamming from China and North Korea, Japan will show initiative to construct a monitoring network for those unwelcome radio transmission with Vietnam, the Philippines, and Indonesia.

Installing state-of-the art shortwave monitoring equipments at each country, it will allow to tracking the exact source of such jamming.

Operation of this monitoring network will start in 2020.

Those three countries, too, are having a tense relations with China over East China Sea territorial disputes, reporting frequent jamming from China as it is assumed and causing negative effect to ships and aircraft trafficking.

Tokyo expects more stringent request to China to eradicate such jamming  once the international network of monitoring with Vietnam, the Philippines and Indonesia starts operation as it would be able to track exact source of such transmission.

Why do they try to jam our communication?

Having a tension too over East China Sea, Japanese vessels have reported frequent communication disturbance by Chinese jamming. Each time as the government requested to Chinese counterpart to get rid of that, such jamming became less right after such requests, but it usually becomes rampant again soon.

North Korea has tried to disturb radio program aired toward the closed country by a Japanese private organization calling for release of abducted Japanese nationals by North Korea by transmitting jamming.■

JAXA Succeeds in Launching Low Cost Telegraph Pole-sized Rokect for Microsats

15:11 JST February 4, 2018

The Editor

SS-520 has been launched from Kagoshima. February 3, 2018, Nikkei

Nikkei and other media reported a successful launching of smaller rocket ‘SS-520’ by JAXA from Uchinoura Space Observation Site in Kagoshima at 14:03 local time on February 3.  SS-520 is almost as long as a telegraph pole and is one of the smallest rocket to launch satellites in the world.  

The rocket transported a microsat TRICOM-1R by the University of Tokyo into orbit after seven minutes of the launching.

The success of this launch will pave a way to expansion of space business with affordable cost as the rocket was intended to prove lower cost of launching by using civilian parts and components extensively to lower the cost.

SS-520 can be launched with about JPY 500 million ($4.6 million), much lower than JPY 4 billion for Epsilon, another solid fuel rocket and H-2A heavy lift with JPY10 billion.

The rocket incorporates commercial parts and components as used in home electronics to curtail the cost. JAXA could prove commercial off-the-shelf parts can be used in outer space. Canon Electronics, in particular, assisted the project by providing a system to control the flight path of the rocket.

Microsats, weighing several hundred kilograms, can be obtained very reasonably and private enterprises and universities can afford them. Demand for microsats is growing and one report speculates a market size of 460 units to be launched in 2023.

A constellation of microsats will produce the use of internet everywhere by trafficking of signals.  Geological data of  the ground surface will make it feasible to launch advanced services in navigation, agriculture or financing as well as predicting natural disasters.

Canon Electronics has launched a joint venture company with IHI Aerospace, Shimizu Construction and others for producing its own rocket based on this experience. The company plans to build its own launching pad in Wakayma to engage in seamless space business. Its goal is keep a launching cost less than a couple of million Yen level and to meet customers request on scheduling flexibly to appeal the global market.■

Kawaski C-2 Starts Flight Operatons at JASDF

　　Kawasaki C-2, JASDF

Sankei Shimbun reported on February 1 that C-2 military transport of JASDF started regular flight operation on January 31. The indigenously developed jet transport aircraft have been deployed to Miho Air Base in Tottori at the Sea of Japan coast since March last year for testing.

The daily reported that the first flight was personnel transport for collecting of still undiscovered bones of soldiers in WW2 at Iwo To (Iwo Jima) via Iruma Air Base, Saitama, to fly to the volcanic island.

One of four aircraft assigned to the Miho base is given this mission. JASDF personnel sent the aircraft for its first mission.

C-2 was developed by Kawasaki Heavy Industries for JASDF to replace aging C-1 transport jet, a vintage of the 1970s but the first Japanese military jet transport.

Powered by two GE CF6-80C2K1F engines, C-2 has wingspan of 44.4m , length 43.9 m and height of 14.2 m. Maximum takeoff weight is 141 tons and it can fly as far as 4,500 km with 30-ton payload, and maximum payload 36 tons. Its cruising speed is Mach 0.8 at 12,200 m altitude. C-2 requires just 500 m as shortest take-off.

Its maximum takeoff weight is close to retired Lockheed C-141 with 146 tons.

JASDF plans to acquire a total of just 13 examples of C-2 at present. ■

JASDF C-2 Transport Demonstration

JAL Seeks For Space Travel After Supersonic Airliner

JAL Goes to Space after Supersonic Airliner: it teams up with ‘ispace,’ a space start-up

the editor, December 18. 2017

Japan Airlines (9201 TSE) announced its capital collaboration with ispace, a startup space company for seeking future habitation in outer space.

JAL will work closely with ispace for mutual promotion as well as support for operation, maintenance and space flight. JAL regards this venture as a way to create new value for the society.

This would be something related with ‘space travel,’ one of other area of JAL’s new business domains for expanding its business.  The Japanese airliner previously announced its collaboration with Boon Technologies for development of a new supersonic airliner.

JAL is one of corporate members to sponor HAKUTO lunar exploration team led by ispace. based in Tokyo.

Corporate visions of ispace is “Expand our planet. Expand our future,’ and lunar exploration is jut a step toward coming deep space exploration for expanding human habitation. The company seeks for lunar orbit flight and lunar landing as the only Japanese entratnt for Google Lunar XPRIZE.

Once bankrupt, Japan Airlines is now free from any restraint due to corporate rehabilitation supervised by the government of Japan.

Tokyo Starts to Develop Its Onw Tomahawk Soon

 

Japan is slated to develop its own version of Tomahawk missile

　Yomiuri Shimbun

November 20,2017

The editor

The Yomiuri Shimbun reported on November 20 that the government of of Japan (GOJ) has started to study feasibility to develop a brand new land attack cruise missile indigenously.  Initial development phase will be requested in fiscal 2018 budget plans that will start April 2018.

This is to add land attack capability to already-planned new anti-ship missile whose R&D study is going to start in fiscal 2018.

This would be the first of kind for Japan to develop land attack cruise missile; even though GOJ will insist that the new missile will be used when Japan will retake its distant island portion of its territory, presumably Senkaku Islands and such. However, theoretically, such cruise missile can be used to attack land facilities including missile launching pads in North Korea.

Such functions are already available with Raytheon's Tomahawk land attack cruise missile and GOJ officials call this new cruise missile concept ‘Japanese Tomahawk.’

Earlier this year, there was discussion among the leading politicians and GOJ to acquire Tomahawk missiles from U.S. to install on Aegis destroyers of the Maritime Self-Defense Force fleet.

Disturbed by several missile launching by North Korea particularly this year,there has been increasing talk on possible preemptive strike capability to be owned by Japan, based on assumption ‘We cannot sit down just watching those lousy North Korean missiles to be launched and coming over us.’

It should be true that ruling party LDP politicians were impressed by last April’s attack on the Syrian chemical weapons deposit by Tomahawk missile ordered by President Donald Trump.

However, the current constitution, especially Article 9, can be interpreted to prohibit Japan to own offensive weaponry and its use including preemptive strike and the ruling Liberal Democrats, actually righter than middle of the road, will be forced to issue new interpretation of the constitution that LDP wishes to amend since its birth in 1955.■

Should Japan Have Tomahawk Missiles to Attack North Korea?

Japan Studies to Have Offensive Military Bases Amid Rising Fear of North Korea

 

2017/8/5

the Editor

Nikkei Shimbun reported on Saturday that the Ministry of Defense would start its study on whether Japan should possess strike capability to such enemy targets as ballistic missile facilities.  As the national defense guideline would be revised in around the end of the next year, the ministry would study introduction of the capability as deterrent to the North Korea.

Nikkei Shimbun

Japan has no capability and equipment to attack any other country as it has boasted ‘exclusively defensive policy,’ in which Japan could employ its defense forces only when it is attacked while limiting its forces for exclusive use of its defence.’

The government and the majority party officials are calling for introduction of Tomahawk cruise missile from USA by means of foreign military sales.

Japan is concerned with rapid development of nuclear and ballistic missile technologies of North Korea, including ICBMs and new type of ballistic missile converted from SLBMs.

In March, the national security study group within LDP, the majority party, advocatedadovocated to possessposess offensive military capability to enemy bases. The report was mainly compiled by Itsunori Onodera who has just inaugurated as the new Minister of Defense this week.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe instructed his newly appointed defense minister, Itsunori Onodera, to commence works to revise the national defense guideline. The ministry of defense would hope to include its intention to acquire new capabilities to attack enemy military bases.

Japan's New Anti-Ship Supersonic Missile

JAPAN Starts Full-Production of New Supersonic Air-to-Ship Missile Soon

A mock-up of XASM-3

JULY17, 2017

From various sources

The Editor

------

The government of Japan has decided to introduce XASM-3, newly developed supersonic air-to-ship missiles to F-2 fighters of Japanese air force from the next fiscal year starting April 2018.

With appropriation of hundreds of million yen budget for procurement, Tokyo hopes the missile moves into series production stage. The new missile is first supersonic flying type to be produced indigenously and hard to be detected. Once equipped to F-2 fighters, it will deter the Chinese navy which is asserting more vocal in the East China Sea and elsewhere.

The new missile to be designated ASM-3 will fly Mach 3 and faster than subsonic missiles of type 80 (ASM-1) and type 93 (ASM-2) that are already introduced in the inventory.

With reduced time to reach a target, while flying so low to avoid radar detection, it would be harder for enemy ship to intercept this missile.

ASM-3 employs Integral Rocket Ramjet (IRR), a combination of solid fuel and ram jet engine for higher flying speed of Mach 3+. Its dual seeker using active radar homing and passive radar homing enhances counter ECM functions. Stand-off firing can make F-2 safer to survive.

Specifications

• Length：5.52m (18.1 ft.)
• Width: 1.19m z(3.9 ft.)
• Diameter: 0.35m (1.15 ft.)
• Max sped：Mach 3 +
• Rnage：80nm+
• Weight：900kg (1,984 lb.)
• Thrust：Integral Rocket-Ramjet
• Guidance method：Inertia/GPS (intermediate phase) + Active/Passive (terminal phase)

XASM-3 is uner devlopment by Mitsubishi Heavy Industiries.

NGO: New Exhibition Center to be built next to Runway

With New International Exhibition Halls on Airport Island, Aichi Hopes to Get Windfall Profit from 2020 Olympics

 

Prefecture of Aichi at central part of Japan including cities of Nagoya and Toyota, has agreed with both Nagoya Customs and Central Japan Airport to make the prefectural international exhibition arena at Centrair Nagoya international airport, scheduled to open in autumn 2019, the nation’s first permanent ‘bonded exhibition halls,’ meaning tax-free service for any exhibitors of the world.  Under the current tax and customs policy of Japan, even a temporary exhibition is regarded as import of goods and subject to 3-6% of customs except for completed automobiles and aircraft that are duty free but all of them are subject to 8%-consumption tax that can be refunded when they are unsold in Japan and taken back to home countries.

‘Bonded exhibition hall’ will offer no custom duty nor consumption tax status of all exhibitors to the arena, as incentive for them.

The new exhibition halls  to be built on the airport island will be as wide as 60,000 sq. meters (646,000 sq. feet) in all, consisting of 6 exhibition halls.

Aichi prefecture has announced its plan to construct the exhibition arena to be completed in 2019, a year before 2020 Tokyo summer olympic games when Tokyo’s existing exhibition centers will be used for the olympic games. Then, it is expected to call those events into Aichi and generating JPY150 billion (USD 1.3 billion) benefit to the local economy.

Buildings of the exhibition arena will be as simple as possible for shorter construction period and cost for more competitiveness to invite more events.

The airport island was all reclaimed off the coast and the Centrair airport is the biggest tenant of the island owned by the Aichi Prefecture. There is still a room for expansion on the island even after the proposed exhibition arena is completed.

Exhibitors can land of the airport and stay at one of the hotels on the island while attending international exhibitions.

Centrair, of Central Japan International Airport, is the nation’s gateway to the central part of the country and Boeing flies four flights to collect components of 787 including wings and fuselage for Washington state.

Frustrated ANA will get extra 737-800s as Filler of Delayed MRJs

2017/4/7 the editor

NIKKEI　reports ANA Holdings has decided to acquire Boeing 737-800s in place of MRJ, a Mitsubishi regional jet, that is being delayed in delivery due to prolonged developmment. Those Boing jets will start oprations in local cities lines from fiscal 2018.   ANA was supposed to be the launch customer of MRJ for the hope of its fuel economy but the largest Japanese airliner is facing with its revision of investment plans.

MRJ was originally scheduled to be delivered to ANA as soon as late 2013 but it is still in redesigning state.

ANA will introduce four Boeing 737-800 with 160 seat configuration by leasing. Those new 737s will replace 737-500 with 120 seats currently in operation based on Chubu international airport and other regional airports.

ANA Holdings has already introduced the same 737-800 with 30 over units in operation. But as MRJ has fewer seats and those 737-800s will add risks of more empty seats and lowered investment returns. ANA will work harder to allure more foreign tourists to those local lines.

ANA Holdings may ask financial compensation to Mitsubishi Aircraft, the manufacturer of MRJ, adding another problem to Mitsubishi.