(Yasuo Osakabe)
NAVAL AIR FACILITY ATSUGI, Japan -- U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Eric Shaah, left, 730th Air Mobility Squadron air transportation specialist, gives the thumbs-up to Japan Ground Self-Defense Force soldiers assigned to the 1st Helicopter Brigade during a C-17 static loading test in support of Keen Sword 25 at Naval Air Facility Atsugi, Japan, Feb. 4, 2025. U.S. Airmen and JGSDF soldiers conducted a static loading of a JGSDF CH-47JA into a USAF C-17 Globemaster III assigned to the 535th Airlift Squadron, Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii. Keen Sword is a biennial field training exercise involving members of the U.S. military and Japan Self-Defense Forces. It is designed to increase readiness and interoperability while strengthening the ironclad U.S.-Japan alliance.
