Former title: US Navy plans to deploy MQ-4C UAV in Okinawa

According to Jane's Defense on May 22, the US Navy plans to deploy two MQ-4C UAVs produced by Norge at Kadena Air Force Base in Okinawa, Japan. On May 20, a US Navy spokesman revealed that the US Pacific Fleet intended to temporarily transfer the MQ-4C UAV and its related personnel originally deployed at Anderson Air Force Base in Guam to a place in Japan. The spokesman stressed that the deployment was planned in advance and was intended to "support the intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) operations of the US India Pacific Command".

At the press conference on May 14, the Japanese Defense Minister pointed out that this deployment "is of great significance from the perspective of Japanese security". From May to October 2024, these two MQ-4C UAVs will be deployed at Kadena Air Force Base. The U.S. Navy uses MQ-4C UAV mainly for its wide area maritime surveillance (BAMS) program. MQ-4C also has the ability to execute signal intelligence (SIGINT), communication relay and search and rescue operations.