The 304th Tactical Fighter Squadron () is a squadron of the

9th Air Wing The 9th Air Wing () is a wing of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force. It comes under the authority of the Southwestern Air Defense Force. It is based at Naha Air Base in Okinawa Prefecture.Japan Air Self-Defense Force The , , also informally referred to as the Japanese Air Force, is the air and space branch of the Japan Self-Defense Forces, responsible for the defense of Japanese airspace, other air and space operations, cyberwarfare and electronic warf ...

. It is based at

Naha Air Base , formally known as the , is an air base of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force formerly under control of the United States Air Force. It is located at Naha Airport on the Oroku Peninsula in Naha, Okinawa, Japan. History Imperial Period Naha Air ...

, in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. It is equipped with Mitsubishi F-15J/DJ and

Kawasaki T-4 The Kawasaki T-4 is a Japanese subsonic intermediate jet trainer aircraft developed and manufactured by the commercial conglomerate Kawasaki Heavy Industries. Its sole operator is the Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF), in part due to historic ...

aircraft. Thompson, Pau
JASDF – Squadron Histories
''J-HangarSpace'' Retrieved September 21, 2017

History

The squadron was founded on August 1, 1977 at

Tsuiki Air Base is a military aerodrome of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force . It is located in Tsuiki, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. History Tsuiki Airfield was originally built by the Imperial Japanese Army Air Force during World War II. The airfield was attack ...

Fukuoka Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Fukuoka Prefecture has a population of 5,109,323 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of 4,986 Square kilometre, km2 (1,925 sq mi). Fukuoka Prefecture borders S ...

flying the McDonnell Douglas F-4EJ. A number of the early pilots had previously flown the North American F-86F Sabre with 10th Squadron, which had just been disbanded. During this period the JASDF still followed a system in which the numbering of a squadron was dependent on the type of aircraft it operated. Single digit squadrons operated the F-86F, 100-numbered squadrons operated the F-86D, 200-numbered squadrons operated the F-104J and the new squadrons operating the F-4 were numbered in the 300s. The pilots retrained on the F-4 and from 1978 were responsible for

Quick Reaction Alert Quick Reaction Alert (QRA) is state of readiness and '' modus operandi'' of air defence maintained at all hours of the day by NATO air forces. The United States usually refers to Quick Reaction Alert as 'Airspace Control Alert'. Some non-NATO c ...

duties around Fukuoka. In January 2016, the squadron relocated to

in Okinawa Prefecture as part of the newly-formed

Mainichi Shimbun The is one of the major newspapers in Japan, published by In addition to the ''Mainichi Shimbun'', which is printed twice a day in several local editions, Mainichi also operates an English language news website called ''The Mainichi'' (previ ...

'' Retrieved September 21, 2017

Tail marking

The squadron's aircraft bear the likeness of a

tengu are a type of legendary creature found in Japanese folk religion (Shinto). They are considered a type of '' yōkai'' (supernatural beings) or Shinto ''kami'' (gods). The ''Tengu'' were originally thought to take the forms of birds of prey and ...

on their tails. Tengu are

goblin A goblin is a small, grotesque, monstrous creature that appears in the folklore of multiple European cultures. First attested in stories from the Middle Ages, they are ascribed conflicting abilities, temperaments, and appearances depending on ...

-like creatures from Japanese mythology. Known for their skill with swords and possession of mystical powers, they were said to inhabit Mount Hiko in Fukuoka, located near the squadron's original base at Tsuiki.

Aircraft operated

36-5696 Kawasaki T-4 of 304 Hikotai, Tsuiki AB (5229612186)

Fighter aircraft

* McDonnell Douglas F-4EJ (1977–1990) * Mitsubishi F-15J/DJ (1990–present)

Liaison aircraft

Lockheed T-33 The Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star (or T-Bird) is an American subsonic jet trainer. It was produced by Lockheed and made its first flight in 1948. The T-33 was developed from the Lockheed P-80/F-80 starting as TP-80C/TF-80C in development, then d ...

A (1977–1993) *

(1991–present)

References