NAF Atsugi is a United States Navy base located between Yamato City and Ayase City in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. It is the largest American naval air base in the Pacific and houses Carrier Air Wing 5, which deploys with the aircraft carrier USS Kitty Hawk. The base is also used by the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force. Servicemembers stationed at Atsugi also work in conjunction with the Kamiseya Naval Radio Receiving Facility.

The base was constructed by the Imperial Japanese Navy in 1938 to house the Japanese 302 Naval Aviation Corps, one of Japan's most formidable fighter squadrons during World War II. Aircraft based at Atsugi shot down more than 300 American bombers during the firebombings of 1945. After Japan's surrender, many of Atsugi's pilots refused to follow Hirohito's order to lay down their arms, and took to the skies to drop leaflets on Tokyo and Yokohama urging locals to resist the Americans. Eventually, the pilots gave up and left Atsugi.

General Douglas MacArthur arrived at Atsugi on August 30 to accept Japan's surrender; it was his first trip to Japan. During the occupation, the base was used for overflow from nearby Camp Zama; it was not refurbished to handle military air traffic until the Korean War. The Seabees swarmed the base in 1950 and prepared it for re-opening that December as Naval Air Station Atsugi.

NAS Atsugi was a major naval air base during both the Korean War and Vietnam War, serving fighters, bombers, and transport aircraft. One of the aircraft based at Atsugi was the U-2 spy plane piloted by Gary Powers, which provoked an international incident when it was downed over the Soviet Union.

In 1972, the U.S. and Japanese governments agreed to share ownership of the base.

Incinerator

NAF Atsugi and the people stationed there gained notoriety in the 1990s due to their close proximity to the Jinkanpo incinerator, which blew toxic and cancerous emissions over the high-rises and townhouses in its immediate vicinity. The owners of the incinerator were arrested and jailed for charges of tax evasion, leaving regulation of the incinerator in jeopardy. The pollution has become so much of a health problem for residents that if they show signs of adverse health effects, they are allowed to leave the base early (usually one is stationed at the base for a tour of three years). Many residents reported sickness and a few died from cancer shortly after moving back to the United States. Servicemembers are currently required to undergo medical screenings before being stationed at Atsugi, in order to ensure that their bodies can handle the poor air quality. In spite of the screenings, health problems that were previously not present in servicemembers arose, such as acute cases of asthma.

The incinerator owners were criticized for both running the business non-stop for six days a week, as well as not respecting the holidays of the base residents (for example, the incinerator would run all day on Christmas).

Operations

The U.S. Navy conducts nighttime landing practice at NAF Atsugi. Noise from this activity has been a concern of residents of Ayase, Yamato and nearby communities for many years. During the 1990s, the U.S. Navy and the Government of Japan nearly reached agreement on moving nighttime landing practice to another location, but as of 2004, no such move has taken place. Leading candidates were Miyakejima (in the Izu Islands) and Iwo Jima (in the Ogasawara Islands), both administered by Tokyo but well-separated from the mainland of Honshu. The former plan has been abandoned, and in fact volcanic activity forced the evacuation of Miyakejima.

External links

• https://www.atsugi.navy.mil/