Japan's Air Self-Defense Force has launched a new unit that will operate the Global Hawk unmanned aircraft for patrol and surveillance activities in the airspace around the country.

The US-developed Global Hawk is a large remote-piloted aircraft measuring 15 meters long. Japan's Defense Ministry spent about 34 billion yen to buy two of them. They were deployed in March at the ASDF Misawa Air Base in Aomori Prefecture, northern Japan.

Following maintenance and inspections, the ASDF judged that the planes are now ready for duty. An air reconnaissance unit, consisting of about 130 personnel, was launched at the base today to operate the aircraft.

The Global Hawk can be remotely piloted for 36 hours. It's also equipped with a high-performance infra-red camera that can surveil from an altitude of 20,000 meters.

The ASDF plans to start patrol and surveillance flights as soon as the weather permits. This is the first time the Self-Defense Forces have launched a unit dedicated to operating unmanned planes. Misawa Base is due to receive a third Global Hawk in the future.

ASDF Chief of Staff Izutsu Shunji says the Global Hawk can engage in intensive monitoring activities in the event of heightened tensions. He says the ASDF will accumulate knowhow and promptly add the aircraft to its capabilities.

The Defense Ministry plans to acquire more remotely piloted planes to build up defense capabilities. The Maritime SDF is due to begin trial operations of the unmanned SeaGuardian from fiscal 2023.