The Japan Self-Defense Forces (JSDF) played a central role in containing wildfires in February and March 2025, including Japan’s largest fire in 50 years. JSDF aircraft and personnel battled blazes alongside local first responders in Iwate and Yamanashi prefectures, both on the main island of Honshu.
Japanese Defense Minister Gen Nakatani said in early March that 11 JSDF helicopters had been dispatched to Ofunato, Iwate, where a forest fire burned about 29 square kilometers, destroying or damaging 210 buildings, according to media reports. The assets included eight CH-47 helicopters for aerial firefighting and three UH-1 helicopters to provide real-time video transmission.
The operation included more than 2,000 JSDF personnel and firefighters from across the country, The Associated Press reported.
“They have sprayed a total of 832 times … about 4,160 tons [3.7 million kilograms] of water,” Nakatani said. “We are ensuring that they are prepared to quickly respond to other missions, such as vigilance and surveillance around Japan, air transport of emergency patients from remote islands, and natural disasters that occur in other regions.”
The blaze, which forced more than 4,500 people to evacuate, was the nation’s worst since 1975.
The JSDF also deployed CH-47s and other helicopters to Yamanashi, about 580 kilometers south of Ofunato, where fire consumed about a square kilometer of forest and destroyed at least one building. More than 200 local firefighters and JSDF personnel supported the operation.
The response efforts are part of the JSDF’s humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR) mission during major accidents and natural disasters such as earthquakes, storms, fires and floods. In coordination with local authorities, the JSDF provides services including search and rescue, medical care, epidemic prevention, flood control, water supply, and transportation.
HADR is a focus of JSDF training and exercises, including in coordination with Allies and Partners such as the United States. In January 2025, for example, Japanese and U.S. personnel rehearsed casualty evacuations and other drills during exercise Nankai Rescue in Japan.
“The Ministry of Defense and the Self-Defense Forces will continue to work together with local governments and firefighting agencies in firefighting activities and will do our utmost to ensure the safety of citizens,” Nakatani said.
