Japanese F-15 lands hard, skids on Naha Airport runway

A Japan Air Self-Defense Force F-15 fighter jet skidded to a stop on a runway at Naha Airport in Okinawa on Tuesday afternoon after its left wing made contact with the pavement during landing, NHK reported.

The aircraft came down on Runway B shortly before 1 p.m. local time and stopped at an angle, according to the Naha Airport Office of Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. NHK footage from a camera positioned at the airport showed the jet dragging its wing along the runway while emitting white smoke, then appearing to catch fire near the rear of the aircraft as it slowed.

Multiple Air Self-Defense Force fire vehicles responded to the scene, and personnel were seen inspecting the aircraft. Officials said the incident may be related to a problem near the landing gear. It was not immediately known whether anyone was injured.

Runway B has been closed since before 1 p.m., but Naha Airport’s other runway remains open and is handling takeoffs and landings for commercial flights, according to the airport office.

The F-15 is the mainstay fighter of the Air Self-Defense Force, with roughly 200 aircraft deployed across bases nationwide. The jet measures approximately 19 meters (62 feet) in length with a wingspan of about 13 meters (43 feet) including its wings, and the type is used for scramble intercepts and other frontline missions.

Naha Airport hosts the Air Self-Defense Force’s 9th Air Wing, whose F-15Js are responsible for air defense over Okinawa and the surrounding islands, an area that has seen a sustained rise in intercepts of Chinese and Russian military aircraft in recent years.