Ospreys join in military exercises in W Japan

OSAKA - Two US Marine Corps' MV-22 Osprey transport aircraft joined in military exercises between the US Marine Corps and Japan's Self-Defense Forces for the first time in the western Japanese prefecture of Shiga on Wednesday, local press reported.

The two Osprey tilt-rotor transport aircraft, part of the squadrons originally based in the southern Japanese prefecture of Okinawa, earlier in the day left the US military's Iwakuni base in Yamaguchi Prefecture and touched down on an SDF training field in the prefecture by 10:30 local am, in which the drills have been conducted since Oct 8, according to Nippon Hoso Kyokai (NHK), Japan's public broadcaster.

After their arrival, members of both forces started a series of the day's joint training programs using the aircraft planned for the first time, the report noted. The two planes are expected to return to the US military base later Wednesday.

Meanwhile, a group of local residents held a rally near the training field to protest against the 11-day joint drills, expressing their strong concerns over the safety issues related to the aircraft, the report said.

It added that local city officials have also started, near the training site, their monitoring of the operation of both forces since the early morning hours to keep the teams from flying over commercial and residential areas as well as the country's biggest freshwater lake, Lake Biwa, located in the center of the prefecture.

A total of 230 military personnel from both forces are participating in the joint drills which are officially planned as part of both countries' efforts to reduce the burden of US military bases on Okinawa and its people.