Okinawa: The defense ministry said Sunday it has warned or sought disciplinary action against some 10 people involved in a military transport plane's unauthorized entry into Japan's air defense identification zone (JADIZ) last month. On July 13, a C-130 aircraft en route to Guam for a military exercise was forced to take a longer route due to failure to win prior permission from Japan to enter its airspace.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the aircraft's pilot, worried about a shortage of fuel, made an emergency landing at Kadena Air Base in Okinawa in order to refuel and, in the process, entered the JADIZ without approval, prompting Japan to scramble a fighter jet in response. "We confirmed through an inspection that in the process of the Air Force transport plane's emergency landing at Kadena Air Base, there were problems in executing the mission, including in communication with the chain of command about cooperation for entry into the airspace and other key situations," the ministry said.
"With respect to the around 10 people involved, we took steps, including requesting disciplinary action, and issuing warnings and caution," it said. The inspection found that the pilot had alerted Japan's air traffic control of a "precautionary landing" but the controller failed to understand, leading to the unauthorized entry into JADIZ.
In later communication, Japan's air traffic control asked the pilot to issue a mayday call and, after the pilot complied, permitted the emergency landing.