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First 2 of 12 F-22s arrive in Japan

TOKYO — The U.S. took its newest and most expensive stealth fighter jet on the road Saturday, deploying the F-22 to an air base on the southern Japanese island of Okinawa for its first overseas mission.

The first two of a dozen F-22s roared into Okinawa’s skies from Langley Air Force Base in Virginia for a three- to four-month deployment to show “the flexibility that U.S. forces have to meet our ongoing commitments and security obligations throughout the Pacific,” the U.S. military said in a statement.

Bringing the planes to Japan is a way of showing off the fighter’s strengths in a region with a complex security balance that is being challenged by the rapid growth of Chinese and North Korean military power.

“It’s a very formidable asset,” said Lt. Gen. Bruce Wright, commander of the U.S. forces in Japan. Wright added that it is important for the F-22 pilots from Langley to get the experience of flying abroad and training with the Japanese.

Though Wright, speaking to reporters in Tokyo before the arrival, said there are no plans to regularly bring F-22s to Japan after the current mission ends, F-22 fighters are scheduled to be deployed in Alaska and possibly Hawaii, which would give a significant boost to the Air Force’s fire power in the Pacific.

The U.S. is not alone in boosting its air capabilities in Asia.

The arrival of the planes — the rest were scheduled to arrive Sunday — comes less than two months after China unveiled its J-10 fighter, which is believed to be one of the most advanced used by any air force in the world today, though it is not seen as a serious technological rival to the F-22.

The U.S. is also actively trying to sell the F-22 abroad.

Japan, which is planning to replace its aging F-4 fighters with a more advanced aircraft, is a prospective buyer.

It is unlikely that they will choose the F-22, however.

“The F-22’s capabilities are good, but it’s too expensive. And the U.S. probably won’t allow us to produce it under license,” Defense Minister Fumio Kyuma said recently.

The F-22A Raptor is an improvement over other fighters because it can cruise at supersonic speeds without using its afterburner — which means that it can go faster, longer. It is also highly maneuverable and its radar-evading stealth design makes it harder to detect.

But high costs have dogged the program.

The F-22 program has been sharply scaled back. Only 183 are now slated to be built, though original plans called for 750, with each plane costing around $350 million. Excluding development costs, each F-22 still costs about $135 million, making it the most expensive fighter in the world.

The U.S is also actively pursuing its next fighter, the F-35.