Press Releases

1. On 25th July, 2019, the Governments of Japan and the United States agreed on the revision of the April 1, 2005, “Guidelines Regarding Off-Base U.S. Military Aircraft Accidents in Japan”

2. This revision aims at further refining the bilateral policies and procedures taken in the event of off-base US military aircraft accidents that occur in Japan in order to enable a more effective and expeditious response.

3. There major changes include:

• Expeditious early entry into the inner cordon / restricted area has been clarified with priority given more clearly to validated USG and GOJ representatives with responsibilities associated with accident site mitigation to include hazardous material observation, the aircraft accident investigation, or claims investigations.
• The U.S. forces will continue to provide relevant information on hazardous materials to Japanese authorities as soon as practically possible after an accident.
• In removing wreckage that has the potential to significantly and negatively affect the condition of the underlying Japanese property, the US forces will coordinate with the landowner. This is anticipated to be done through the Regional Defense Bureau of the Ministry of Defense.
• When the US authorities, GOJ authorities, or local authorities conduct environmental surveys, the results will be shared within the Joint Committee framework.