DVIDS (CENTCOM / DoD): U.S.-based F-35B squadron deploys to Japan for Unit Deployment Program
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MARINE CORPS AIR STATION IWAKUNI, Japan - The U.S. Marine Corps deploys Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 533, also known as the “Hawks,” an F-35B Lightning II squadron based at Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort, South Carolina to MCAS Iwakuni, Japan, under the Marine Corps’ Unit Deployment Program (UDP) on Sept. 5, 2026. VMFA-533 joins Marine Aircraft Group (MAG) 12, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing, and will conduct aviation operations and maintain combat readiness throughout the Indo-Pacific region. VMFA-533 will integrate as the new UDP squadron, replacing the current UDP squadron, VMFA-232.
The Unit Deployment Program provides continental U.S.-based units with experience operating in the Indo-Pacific through continuous and overlapping deployments to the region. The Hawks will augment 1st Marine Aircraft Wing’s ability to provide combat-ready, task-organized aviation forces capable of operating from naval and expeditionary environments. This enhances operational readiness, promotes regional stability, and demonstrates the United States’ enduring commitment to the U.S.-Japan Treaty of Mutual Cooperation and Security.
EAST ASIA - Japan’s Ministry of Defense and Cabinet Secretariat assessed that North Korea launched at least two ballistic missiles from inland areas on October 12, with one flying more than 560 miles (910 km) and both estimated to have fallen near North Korea’s east coast or in the Sea of Japan outs
KOREAN PENINSULA - On September 20 at about 8:54 AM UTC (5:54 PM Japan time), North Korea launched at least one ballistic missile from the vicinity of its east coast toward the northeast, the Japanese Defense Ministry and Cabinet Secretariat said.
INDIA - The Indian Coast Guard Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre in Sri Vijaya Puram received information at 6:18 a.m. UTC on August 22 that communication had been lost with the Panama-flagged bulk carrier MV Ocean Winner, IMO 9145530, and that the vessel sank in the Bay of Bengal.
TOKYO - On August 20, following North Korea’s ballistic missile launch, Deputy Director-General Ariyoshi of Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs held a trilateral phone meeting with Baek Yong-jin, Director-General for Korean Peninsula Policy at South Korea’s Foreign Ministry, and David Wilezol, Deput
