There is no question that the ‘historic’ first fighter deployment by the Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF) to Europe captured the imagination of the aviation community far and wide. It got everyone discussing the possibilities and speculation surrounding the composition of the deployment; how long? how many aircraft? etc, which only added to the tension the aviation community felt. No surprise then that there were no official details provided by the RAF in the build-up, and It was not until the JASDF provided limited details that the military ‘rumour mill’ truly got going; and how it did!! Ian Harding was on hand at both RAF Coningsby and RAF Brize Norton during the deployment to capture this historic occasion.

It begins!

With seven Mitsubishi F-15J’s from 201st Tactical Fighter Squadron  ‘reportedly’ departing Chitose Air Base on September 14, 2025, the hopes for a significant deployment grew. Unfortunately three aircraft almost immediately returned to base leaving four aircraft heading east accompanied by two air refuelling tanker aircraft; a Boeing KC-46A Pegasus and a Boeing KC-767J. Images showed that the fighters had received ‘Atlantic Eagles’ markings for the historic deployment which symbolised the JASDF jets ‘spreading their wings across the Atlantic’.

Running from September 14 to October 1, 2025, this ‘goodwill’ visit by the JASDF ultimately included visits to the United States (Eielson AFB), Canada (Goose Bay), the United Kingdom (RAF Coningsby and RAF Brize Norton), and Germany (Laage Air Base). On arrival at Goose Bay, two F-15J’s were hangared leaving just two aircraft to complete the journey to RAF Coningsby on September 18, 2025. As a precursor to the main event, a single Kawasaki C-2 arrived at RAF Coningsby on September 17, 2025.

The scene at RAF Coningsby on the arrival day was a sight to behold. The car park at the southern end of the airfield was full by 06:00 as were many of the surrounding roads. Enthusiasts parked in Coningsby itself and walked to the airfield. Although very busy, the atmosphere was excellent, aided by the Station and local Police who understandably maintained a very low profile. The anticipation amongst the crowd was tangible!

With all eyes on Flight Radar 24, it soon became clear that the JASDF flight from Goose Bay involved five aircraft even though many wanted to still believe at this late stage that all four fighters would make the journey. The ‘Flight’ ultimately comprised two F-15J’s (22-8936 and 42-8946 call signs  ‘JINTEI 1/2’),  and three tankers. These were two JASDF; Boeing KC-46 (JF601/44-3613) and Boeing KC-767 (JA501/87-3601) both of which landed at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire, plus an Omega Air DC-10-30CF (OMEGA11/N264DE) which landed at Prestwick Airport in Scotland. It appeared that the Omega Air DC-10-30 had completed the air refuelling during the Atlantic crossing. Additional heavy-lift cargo and personnel support was provided by a further Kawasaki C-2 cargo aircraft (28-1216 ‘JAF201’) which arrived in stunning light at RAF Coningsby at 18:05 local time.

With regard to the F-15J’s, arrival, their ETA at RAF Coningsby was 16:10 local time and the weather at this time was looking good! Happiness all round  at this stage but sadly the weather did not hold. With the weather deteriorating rapidly and increasing cloud cover, the two F-15J’s eventually broke into the Coningsby circuit around 16:45 local time preceded by ‘WARLORD 41/41’ flight who had conducted an air-to-air sortie prior to landing. Landing on runway 25, the two F-15J’s taxied slowly to the end of the runway before turning right and taxing together on to the main 29 Squadron ramp where they were greeted by senior officials plus photographers who recorded this historic event. As the sun was setting, both jets were towed away and hangared with 29 Squadron. They remained hangared for the duration of their stay until they departed for Laage Air Base on September 23, 2025 accompanied by two German Air Force Eurofighter EF2000 from TLG73 which arrived from Laage the previous day.

RAF Brize Norton

Whilst most attention was understandably centred on the fast jet component, between September 18-26, 10 Squadron and 101 Squadron at the Oxfordshire base hosted the air refuelling component from the JASDF comprising the Boeing KC-767J from the 404th Air Refueling Squadron based at Komaki Air Base, and the first visit to the UK by a Boeing KC-46A Pegasus from the 405th Air Refuelling Squadron based at Miho Air Base. Whilst JASDF KC-767J’s and Kawasaki C-2’s have both participated at RIAT in previous years, this air refuelling deployment in support of ‘Atlantic Eagles’ was also a UK first and was as such ‘historic’.

This component of the deployment also achieved so much even though there were no missions flown. Not only has it strengthened the bond between both air refuelling communities, it complemented the recent collaboration between the RAF, JASDF and the Republic of Korea Air Force, conducted during Operation Hightower in August 2025 in the Indo-Pacific region. Operation Hightower served as an extension of Operation Highmast, the broader eight-month mission of the Carrier Strike Group 2025.

On September 26, 2025 the two JASDF tankers departed RAF Brize Norton to rendezvous over the east coast of the UK with the two F-15J’s which had departed Laage Air Base earlier. After back-tracking the main runway on arrival, there was a sense of ‘theatre’ as the two tankers led by 44-3613 Boeing KC-46A Pegasus ‘JF601’ with 87-3601 Boeing KC767J ‘JF501’ in close formation behind, taxied slowly along the taxi way before departing with very little interval. Impressively, they were in the air at 15:30 local time, exactly as expected. In all respects, punctuality and timing to perfection!

History made

All parties agreed this historic first JASDF fighter deployment to Europe in the nation’s 71-year history had been hugely successful. Whilst no interviews were available, various cultural engagements took place with the based Squadrons which will have aimed to build relationships and strengthen ties between Japan and all the NATO nations concerned. For Japan, the deployment is no less historic as it marks not only the first time fighter jets have deployed to Europe, but the deployment further demonstrates its commitment to expanding international interoperability as well as its long-range reach and ability to project it’s capability. This deployment represented a huge success for the RAF, JASDF, Luftwaffe and for NATO, and one can only hope that we will see another deployment like this in the near future.

AeroResource would like to thank the RAF Coningsby Public Relations and media team for all their support on the arrival day.

You can find out about the historic deployment here ; Japan Air Self-Defense Force Completes Historic First Fighter Deployment to Europe | Royal Air Force

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