The security environment in southwestern Japan has changed drastically! Scoop shot of Magejima Air Base of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force, which is an entire island base.

An Entire Island” Training Facility for Japan and the U.S.

Mage Island belongs to the Osumi Islands in Kagoshima Prefecture.

On this small island, measuring 4.5 km from north to south and 2.7 km from east to west, construction has been going on day and night since 2011 at a rapid pace.

Ishigaki Island and Miyako Island are among the islands where Self-Defense Forces bases and posts have been constructed, but Magejima differs greatly from them in that the entire island will be used as a Self-Defense Forces base.

The photo above is of Magejima taken in mid-March of this year. The main runway (2,450 m) and the crosswind runway (1,830 m), the two most distinctive features of the island, were clearly visible from the sky. The differently oriented runways allow for takeoffs and landings regardless of weather conditions or wind direction.

Here, takeoff and landing training for the F-35B, the Air Self-Defense Force’s latest stealth fighter, and simulated landing and takeoff training for the U.S. Navy’s carrier-based aircraft currently based on Iwo Jima are scheduled to take place. The distance from Iwakuni Air Base (Yamaguchi Prefecture), where the U.S. Naval Air Forces are stationed, to Iwo Jima is approximately 1,400 km.

From the air, piers of various sizes could be seen. The jetties are designed to allow Maritime Self-Defense Force destroyers and other vessels to berth here. A landing area will also be built, and training facilities for the Ground Self-Defense Force will also be constructed. The island will be a complex of the Self-Defense Forces, and construction of these facilities seems to be progressing quite well.

The number of SDF personnel working on the island is expected to be between 150 and 200. The island will house living quarters, a mess hall, a bathhouse, welfare facilities, a gymnasium, etc., but the members and their families will live on Tanegashima Island, about 10 km east of Magejima.

Government buildings will be constructed in Nishinomote City, Nakatane Town, and Minamitane Town on the island, and the members will commute to Magejima by boat using Hamatsuwaki Port in Nakatane Town as their commuter port. The commuter boat will be operated by a private contractor commissioned by the government.

The base for the Magejima construction work is also located on Tanegashima.

I immediately applied for the job because of the good pay and other conditions. People literally come from all over Japan. The only flaw is that there are no places to play on Tanegashima.

The worker from the Kanto region scratched his head, but the town was bustling with activity at night. A restaurant worker, smiling, said, “It’s a bit of a bubble.

Tanegashima also seemed to be prospering, with new jobs being created.

Umagejima has another important face. It serves as a fortress island, an “unsinkable aircraft carrier” floating in the ocean. In the event of an emergency, the air base would be the first to be attacked. Once fighter jets take off, they must land somewhere to refuel and replenish ammunition, but they will not be able to do so if the base’s runways are destroyed.

The Ministry of Defense plans to utilize civilian airports as well, which is called “mobile dispersed operations. Magejima is located at a reasonable distance from the Miyako Strait and the Amami Islands, which China is targeting, and will serve as a supply base for fighter aircraft and naval vessels fighting on the front lines in the event of an emergency.

The project is scheduled for completion in 1930. The security environment in southwestern Japan will change drastically in the future.

From the April 17/24, 2026 issue of “FRIDAY