Photo By Sgt. 1st Class William Tanner | U.S. military units, alongside Integrated Air and Missile Defense (IAMD) specialists...... read more read more
U.S. military units, alongside Integrated Air and Missile Defense (IAMD) specialists from Japan, successfully conducted the first ever Japan – U.S. Testbed (JUST) from U.S. Forces Japan and 5th Air Force spaces at Yokota Air Base, November 4-7, 2025.
JUST is a controlled setup where different options can be tried out safely before implementation. Basically, a platform that is built for experimentation, testing, and evaluation.
Over 50 participants, representing 14 Japan and U.S. entities, collaborated to execute one day of testbed preparations for warfighter console familiarization, followed by three days of intense simulated missile defense engagements.
The JUST incorporated members from COMSEVENTHFLT, 38th BDE, 5th AF/A3, USFJ/J3, 94th AAMDC, USINDOPACOM/J36, MARFORPAC, Pacific IAMD Center (PIC), Missile Defense Agency (MDA), Japan-Joint Operations Center (JJOC), Japan Air Defense Command (ADC), Japan Air Self Defense Force (JASDF), Japan Maritime Self Defense Force (JMSDF), and Japan Ground Self Defense Force (JGSDF, all working together to ensure accomplishment of the overall mission.
This history making event was planned, organized and facilitated by the PIC, and supported by MDA, delivering the bilateral team of warfighters with unprecedented challenges in countering advanced missile threats in a simulation environment.
Following a statement affirmed by former INDOPACOM Commander Admiral Chris Aquilino (Ret) and former Japan Chief of Staff General Takayoshi Yamazaki (Ret) at the Senior Leader Seminar (SLS) in 2022, the JUST became more than just an idea. “Bilateral missile defense operations of Japan and the United States is vital to peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific. The parties remain committed to enhancing mission effectiveness of bilateral missile defense operations.”
Applying the guidance from the 2022 SLS, the JUST idea took form, launching the conceptual design and process of providing scalable capability and formal, structured procedures to refine IAMD interoperability between U.S. and Japan. In September 2025, US and Japan leadership reiterated the importance of improving mutual defense as INDOPACOM Commander Admiral Sam Paparo and Japan Chief of Staff General Hiroaki Uchikura met in Tokyo, vowing enhancement of IAMD plans highlighted by implementation of the JUST.
Leveraging technical and tactical concepts established in testbeds in Europe and Israel, the JUST affords an ongoing means for Japan and U.S. warfighters to develop, refine and validate bilateral tactics, techniques and procedures (TTPs) and pre-planned responses (PPRs) to defend Japan and U.S. forces from regional adversaries.
As a capability, JUST offers a simulated, scalable environment to enable the military planners developmental and design abilities while assessing those very abilities during a variety of adversary missile attacks. As an event, JUST focused on executing bilateral procedures in a high repetition setting, conducting re-runs as necessary, to attain the highest level of coordinated defense.
Results of this year’s JUST will address TTP discrepancies identified within the implementation of three progressive simulation vignettes. Execution commenced on day one with moderate missile attacks on remote sovereign territory, which expanded into heavier assaults throughout other areas on day two. Day three culminated in overwhelming raids on major infrastructure throughout the region.
The way ahead for JUST development includes enhancement of current TTPs, optimizing interceptor usage by deconflicting engagements between the Japanese and U.S. defensive systems.
Flexibility of the MDA-SIM simulation tool allows for close examination and testing of future Japan and US IAMD capabilities, enabling planners to test the modifications of current doctrine and to start establishing baseline processes prior to actual weapons employment. In turn, this will help to also support bilateral creation of innovative measures while deterring future, advanced adversary capabilities that can be tested during JUST events.
Participants of this year’s JUST overwhelmingly agreed that pioneering event was a valuable addition to the INDOPACOM IAMD portfolio with unlimited potential to bridge existing IAMD exercises, experiments and tabletops into mutually beneficial building blocks providing integration and interoperability. This initial test bed provided a controlled, realistic environment to develop, test, integrate and evaluate complex systems safely, cost-effectively, and through effective simulation tools.
| Date Taken: | 11.19.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 11.19.2025 21:33 |
| Story ID: | 551840 |
| Location: | JOINT BASE PEARL HARBOR-HICKAM, HAWAII, US |
| Web Views: | 57 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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