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  • Readiness starts with mental wellness

    Readiness isn’t built on the flight line alone. Behind every mission launched from Kadena Air Base is a force prepared not just physically, but mentally—equipped to perform under pressure, adapt to uncertainty and respond when it matters most. At the center of that effort, the 18th Medical Group’s

  • Venomous threats meet prepared forces

    U.S. service members participate in a specialized snake handling course at Kadena Air Base, Japan, April 28, 2026. The 18th Civil Engineer Squadron Pest Management team partnered with the U.S. Marine Corps 3rd Medical Battalion to integrate snake handling into a joint service preventative medicine

  • Arresting system certification reinforce Kadena’s combat readiness

    U.S. Air Force Airmen assigned to the 18th Civil Engineer Squadron, in coordination with the 18th Operations Group, 18th Operations Support Squadron and the 120th Fighter Squadron, conducted dual aircraft arresting system certifications at Kadena Air Base, Japan, May 7, 2026. The event validated

  • Strength Through Partnership

    Iwao Horii, Japan’s State Minister of Foreign Affairs, received an immersion tour at Kadena Air Base, Japan, April 27, 2026. The tour provided Horii with a deeper understanding of the installation’s mission and capabilities.

  • 18th MDG strengthens readiness with patient decontamination training

    Medical personnel from the 18th Medical Group completed a three-day patient decontamination course at Kadena Air Base, Japan, April 21–23, 2026, strengthening the wing’s ability to respond to chemical, biological and radiological incidents and sustain operations in contested environments.

  • Carrying the weight

    U.S. service members, civilians and their families ruck during the 13th Annual Bataan Memorial Death March ruck at Kadena Air Base, Japan, April 18, 2026. The 8-mile route around the installation’s flight line paid tribute to the casualties and survivors of the 1942 Bataan Death March.

  • Building the future force: AFAC leadership visits Kadena

    U.S. Air Force Brig. Gen. Jeffrey W. Nelson, commander of the Air Force Accessions Center and Air Force Recruiting Service and Chief Master Sgt. Liz Fetherston, command chief of the Air Force Accessions Center and Air Force Recruiting Service, visited Kadena Air Base, Japan, April 20–21, 2026, to

  • 18th Wing command chief trains with military working dog teams

    U.S. Air Force Chief Master Sgt. Will Cupp, 18th Wing command chief, participates in military working dog training with Airmen assigned to the 18th Security Forces Squadron and MDWs, at Kadena Air Base, Japan, April 16, 2026. MWDs enhance installation security through detection capabilities and

  • Takeoff to touchdown

    U.S. Air Force F-35A Lightning IIs, assigned to the 4th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron and 356th EFS, and F-16C Fighting Falcons, assigned to the 120th EFS and 119th EFS, deployed to Kadena Air Base, take off and land on the flight line at Kadena Air Base, Japan, March 30, 2026. The presence of

  • 909th ARS honors fallen KC-135 crew during vigil at Kadena Air Base

    Thousands of miles from the crash site in western Iraq, Airmen at Kadena Air Base, Japan, joined service members and families across the globe in mourning the loss of a KC-135 Stratotanker crew who died while supporting Operation Epic Fury.The vigil, held at the 909th Air Refueling Squadron, brought

  • BM26: F-16C Fighting Falcons take off to Futenma for training

    U.S. Air Force F-16C Fighting Falcon assigned to the 119th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron and 120th EFS, deployed to Kadena Air Base, takes off during a USAF-led operational exercise Beverley Midnight 26 at Kadena Air Base, Japan, March 10, 2026. The U.S. Air Force deploys its most advanced

  • BM26: Every Airman can save a life

    U.S. Air Force Airmen assigned to the 18th Maintenance Operations Squadron tested their emergency response skills during a simulated injury scenario as part of a USAF Force-led operational exercise Beverly Midnight 26 at Kadena Air Base, Japan, March 12, 2026.

  • BM26: Joint hot pit refueling strengthens rapid airpower generation

    U.S. Air Force F-16C Fighting Falcons assigned to the 120th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron, deployed to Kadena Air Base, conducted hot pit refueling with U.S. Marines during a U.S. Air Force-led operational exercise Beverly Midnight 26 at Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, Japan, March 11, 2026.