Japanese and U.S. Partners Conduct Airfield Damage Repair Training at Keen Sword 27

TOKYO, Japan – Security forces from nine allied and partner nations are currently gathered in Japan for Keen Sword 27, a biennial field training exercise between the Japan Self-Defense Force, the U.S. military, and their partners. More than 56,000 personnel from seven countries are engaged in a wide range of training activities, including exercises focused on airfield damage repair (ADR) at four Japanese and U.S. air bases across Japan.

ADR focuses on assessing damage and restoring flight line functionality in a short time span with the goal of making it safe and operational as quickly as possible. Teams begin by assessing the extent of the damage, identifying hazards, and prioritizing repair zones. After this, they begin clearing debris and removing any loose material that could pose a threat to aircraft. Crews then repair the crater, using rapid-set concrete and compaction techniques to stabilize the surface. The final phase involves surface finishing and inspection to ensure the runway can safely support aircraft operations.

“I’ve been impressed with how ambitious the ADR component of Keen Sword 27 has been compared to this same exercise two years ago,” said U.S. Navy Cdr. Jonathan Henson, a planner for Keen Sword 27. “During the last Keen Sword exercise, all of our ADR was done as a tabletop exercise. This year, we have multinational teams filling in hundreds of craters in runways on four different bases across Japan.”

Engineering units from the Japan Self-Defense Force and U.S. military are conducting separate ADR training activities at Iruma Air Base near Tokyo; Misawa Air Base in northern Honshu; Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni in southern Honshu; and Air Base Kadena on Okinawa. At each location, demolition crews deliberately damaged runways to provide ADR teams with opportunities to repair them. Coordination and communication between partner nations and service branches is essential to enable swift flight line restoration and ensure continuous air operations. When runways are rendered unusable, the ability to restore them quickly can determine the success or failure of a mission.

“This exercise has been a very realistic opportunity for our Seabees, especially some of our junior members on their first deployment, to see how ADR is done in action,” said Lt. j.g. Daysy Cruz-Cordero, officer in charge of the Iwakuni detachment from Navy Mobile Construction Battalion 5. “ADR is an essential function of expeditionary construction in response to an enemy attack against an air base. We are working through this very realistic scenario together with our partners from the Japan Self-Defense Force and the U.S. Marines. This exercise is stressing and testing our capabilities, and it’s exposed some areas for improvement. We are working through the challenges together, and it’s been a great learning experience for all involved.”

“In each of these training evolutions, multinational partners are gaining real-world, hands-on experience in a vital capability needed to ensure continuity of operations under combat and natural disaster conditions,” said Cdr. Henson. “The ADR activity at Misawa Air Base will likely be the most intense, with crews working round the clock to repair 120 craters over three days. This will require them to work at a demanding pace, but that’s why we do these exercises: to prepare our teams to respond to real-life disasters.”

Keen Sword is a routine, biennial, bilateral field training exercise with multinational participation, designed to increase readiness and interoperability between the U.S. military and Japan Self-Defense Forces while strengthening the ironclad U.S.-Japan Alliance.

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