In Hawaii Marine, Volume 30 Number 16, June 7, 2001.
http://www.mcbh.usmc.mil/news/June7A.pdf
Taking the opportunity to return a few favors extended during a Western Pacific deployment to Japan, Patrol Squadron Four welcomed a detachment of aircrews from the Japan Maritime Self Defense Force to MCB Hawaii, Kaneohe Bay, recently.
The JMSDF sends aircrews to K-Bay throughout the year, but sending a training detachment of five P-3 Orion aircraft happens but once.
Detachment 36 participated in a series of local area flights and a number of joint training missions around the neighbor islands for a period of four weeks.
Navy Lt. John Wigglesworth briefed the detachment about local area flight rules and flew a familiarization flight around the islands with the visitors, while Navy Lt. Craig Exum gave a brief on current Anti-Submarine Warfare tactics used by our allies today.
Along with the many training flights scheduled, several other events were planned.
Assisting the VP-4 Skinny Dragons in their role as host squadron, the United Japanese Society of Hawaii extended local hospitality.
President Kenneth Saiki, a former JMSDF captain, described the society as both a cultural and social organization.
Greeting official guests from Japan is a normal function of the society.
"We're here to offer our support by bringing a little bit of home [during their stay in] Hawaii," he said.
For such a large group, the society drafted special plans and arranged several social events, as well as a trip to the first Japanese Naval Cemetery located outside of Japan.
Detachment 36 departs MCB Hawaii today for the mainland. Commenting on the JMSDF deployment, Cmdr. Tyrone Payton, the executive officer of the Skinny Dragons, said, "It's always a pleasure to host our allies and repay the warm hospitality we receive during our deployment to Japan."
JMSDF Patrol Squadron Five was one of the squadrons to host the Skinny Dragons with open arms when VP-4 was deployed to Japan, Payton said. When in Japan, VP-4 maintained two deployment sites, one in Misawa and the other on the island of Okinawa.
In the weeks ahead, the Skinny Dragons may have yet another opportunity to jost JMSDF. Detachment 36 will continue their two-month training detachment in San Diego, California, and in Whidbey Island, Washington.
While in San Diego, JMSDF will participate in Joint Task Force Exercise (JTFEX-01), a multi-national exercise involving aircrews from Whidbey Island, Canada, and Australia.
Both nations will fly their P-3s alongside several Skinny Dragon aircrews during the exercise. Detachment 36 will return to Oahu for a two-week stay before crossing the Pacific to Japan -- to home.