(Center) Hideaki Sakihama, 18th Wing Public Affairs community relations specialist, explains the significance of one of Kadena Air Base's historic sites near Gate 3 during a tour with Japanese World War II era veterans and families Sept. 30. Nearly 30 members from various branches of Japan's Disabled Veterans Association visited the base's old kamikaze aircraft hangars and Peace Garden - the site where the Japanese 10th Army surrendered at the end of the war. (Air Force/Tech. Sgt. Jason Lake)
Japanese media take photos and video of 28 World War II veterans and their families posing in front of Kadena Air Base's Peace Garden Sept. 30. Members of the Japanese Disabled Veterans Association, many of which served in places like Burma, Africa and China, visited two of Kadena's historic war sites. The group represented a dwindling number of war veterans from the Tokyo area, Kyushyu and Okinawa. (Air Force/Tech. Sgt. Jason Lake)
Japanese World War II veterans gaze upon the site where Japan's 10th Army surrendered at the end of the war. Twenty-eight members of the Japan Disabled Veterans Association visited two of Kadena's historic sites Sept. 30. (Right) Shinzou Kaji, 94, from Miyazaki Prefecture was recovering in a field hospital in Burma when he heard his country had surrendered to the United States in August 1945. The former senior NCO in the Japanese Imperial Army said his enemy has become a key ally over time and now the two countries promote peace and stability in Asia. (Air Force/Tech. Sgt. Jason Lake)