US military choppers' flight routes above packed Tokyo boulevards revealed: Mainichi probe May 18, 2023 (Mainichi Japan) Japanese version A U.S. military helicopter
最高ブランドコピーN級品 center, flies low over central Tokyo's Omotesando boulevard as it prepares to land at a military heliport in the capital's Roppongi district, on Dec. 6, 2022. The photo was taken from a 200-meter-class building. (Mainichi) TOKYO -- For over a year, the Mainichi Shimbun has been investigating a question vital to the people of Tokyo and indeed of Japan: What kinds of flights are U.S. military helicopters taking over the very center of the Japanese capital? One deafening answer: Right over the crowded streets of the Harajuku-Omotesando and Jingu Gaien areas, on their way in and out of a U.S. military heliport in the city's Roppongi district. Experts have analyzed that since the heliport is nestled in the heart of a densely built-up area, the flight routes over Omotesando boulevard's Japanese Zelkovas and the popular Ginkgo-lined promenade of Jingu Gaien park were chosen as the only way to avoid flying near buildings, to minimize damage to objects on the ground and to the aircraft in case of a malfunction. However, pushing the helicopters out over areas without built structures means they are flying over roads packed with cars and people. In 2021, the Mainichi reported that U.S. military choppers were regularly flying at low altitudes over some of Tokyo's dense urban districts, including Shinjuku, contravening aviation regulations for Japanese aircraft. Following up on that reporting, this publication examined the helicopters' flights in and out of the Roppongi heliport from January 2022 to May 2023. The area where the heliport is located is the very image of a skyscraper forest, and Tokyo's Minato Ward is urging for it to be decommissioned over noise pollution and safety concerns. Observing from local skyscrapers and the Mainichi news helicopter, our reporters found that U.S. Air Force UH-1s, Army Blackhawks, Navy Seahawks and other military choppers made multiple daily flights back and forth to the Roppongi heliport from U.S. bases including in Kanagawa Prefecture and western Tokyo. The choppers traversed routes right over Harajuku and neighboring Omotesando to the west of the heliport
ブランドコピー最高N級 Nishi-Azabu to the south, and Jingu Gaien to the north, primarily during departure and landing and sometimes in formations of multiple aircraft. A U.S. UH-1 flies over the Omotesando intersection in central Tokyo after taking off from a U.S. military heliport in the capital's Roppongi district on April 18, 2023. (Mainichi) The most common path was over the Harajuku-Omotesando neighborhood within 1 to 2 kilometers of the heliport, with around 120 flights observed just when Mainichi reporters were present. UH-1s and Blackhawks flew over Harajuku's fashion-forward Takeshita Street, filled with young crowds, and the treelined Omotesando boulevard. There are also elementary schools and kindergartens beneath their flight path, and yet the choppers often whirred by lower than the tops of 200-meter-class buildings in the area. In both the Nishi-Azabu and Jingu Gaien neighborhoods -- also both home to elementary schools -- Mainichi reporters confirmed at least 60 low-altitude flyovers by UH-1s. Nishi-Azabu, which is right next to the heliport, saw choppers fly at an altitude of around 100 meters. About 1 km to the north, some helicopters were flying just 50 to 60 meters from a 90-meter-tall office building at the Jingu Gaien park area, famed for its wide, Gingko-lined walkways. Night flights also confirmed U.S. military helicopters continue to fly in and out of a heliport in central Tokyo's Roppongi district after nightfall, as seen with this Army Blackhawk flying low over the city center after takeoff on May 11, 2022. (Mainichi) During the observation period, the Mainichi furthermore confirmed about 40 flights into and out of the heliport between sunset and 9 p.m. The helicopters followed the same low-altitude routes as they did during the day, and some touched down while the heliport landing lights were off. In a total of 11 cases, Blackhawks pulled up suddenly just before landing, and UH-1s repeatedly circled low over urban neighborhoods just as they did in the daytime -- all likely training maneuvers. According to the Japan Aircraft Pilot Association's helicopter operation manual, pilots' field of vision is significantly limited in darkness
ブランドコピーN級品 making it difficult to judge distances and other operational conditions. The manual adds that there have been accidents caused by nighttime optical misjudgments. Major differences with Japanese helicopter flights Under the Civil Aeronautics Act, Japanese aircraft are in principle kept to a hard deck of 300 meters above built-up areas. This does not apply to take-offs and landings, but during the latest observation, the Mainichi has observed U.S. military helicopters flying at about the same height as 200-meter-class buildings in Tokyo's Nishi-Shinjuku and Shibuya districts -- located over 4 km and 2 km apart from the Roppongi heliport, respectively. U.S. military chopper flights are very different from their Japanese counterparts. Tokyo Fire Department helicopters, which can use the Roppongi heliport in an emergency, fly in and out over Aoyama Cemetery to the heliport's northwest, and execute major changes of altitude for landings and takeoffs. According to the fire department, over Tokyo its choppers try as much as possible to keep a cruising altitude of at least 750 meters to avoid noise pollution, and descend rapidly only when they are very close to the landing pad. There is also a heliport atop Japan's Defense Ministry headquarters in Tokyo's Shinjuku Ward. But the ministry says it keeps flights there to a minimum -- primarily for things like disaster relief operations and ferrying around foreign dignitaries -- out of consideration for nearby residents. Furthermore, it posts the information on its website when the pads are set to be used. In contrast
スーパーコピーブランド the U.S. military does not share any details on the operation of its Roppongi heliport. U.S. Forces Japan has not responded to the Mainichi's request for comment. Major safety issues A U.S. military UH-1 is seen flying low over the Nishi-Azabu neighborhood of Tokyo's Minato Ward after taking off from a military heliport in the capital's Roppongi district, on Jan. 26, 2023. The photo was taken from a 200-meter-class building. (Mainichi) According to Toshiyuki Kusuhara, a former senior aircraft accident investigator at the Japan Transport Safety Board, "the U.S. military probably believes that it will be able to avoid a major disaster if one of its helicopters makes an emergency landing on a treelined street. But these are public roads with heavy traffic and plenty of people coming and going. It's odd that daily flights like these are approved. They present a very serious safety issue." Kusuhara added, "It's also difficult to see tall buildings and emergency landing sites at night, when visibility is poor. There's no way to guarantee either noise reduction or safety with these kinds of night flights right over the city center." Meanwhile, military analyst Kazuhisa Ogawa told the Mainichi, "In large cities, it's safest to fly over rivers, but there aren't any in the area (of the heliport), so I suppose they (the U.S. military) are flying over treelined streets. In that way, I feel they have shown a sort of minimum of consideration." Regarding night flights, Ogawa noted that the Blackhawks participate in nighttime operations in war zones, and explained, "If they cannot make night flights, like passing through buildings at night, their own lives will be in danger. That is why the pilots are highly skilled." He added, "The U.S. side probably feels that they are familiar with the route, and that as long as they are flying with good use of radar and other equipment, there is no danger." However
ブランドスーパーコピー he also called the chopper flights over densely populated neighborhoods "a noise pollution problem." He went on that "this would be solved if the Japanese authorities just said they wanted them (the U.S. helicopters) to fly a little higher. The United States would accept a convincing request by such an important ally. "The biggest problem here is that Japan doesn't have the capacity to present the evidence and tell the U.S. 'no.'" (Japanese original by the Questioning the Special Rights of U.S. Forces Japan Reporting Team) * * * * * The Mainichi Shimbun's Questioning the Special Rights of U.S. Forces Japan series probes the realities of the U.S. military presence in this country, and reexamines the state of the special privileges granted the American military under the Japan-U.S. Status of Forces Agreement. * * * * * To show the English subtitles, click on the "Subtitles/closed captions (c)" icon. Font Size SML Print Go to The Mainichi Home Page Related Articles US military helicopters' low-altitude flights Mainichi reporting on US military privileges in Japan wins newspaper unions award Opinion: Citizens of America, will you ignore the US military's disrespect for Japan?
