Last Updated: Sunday, 11 February 2007
Stealth jets on Okinawa mission http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6351067.stm
[The jets are the most expensive in the USAF arsenal]
The deployment of United States Air Force (USAF) F-22 stealth fighter jets to a base on Japan's Okinawa island has prompted protests from residents.
It is the first time the jets, the latest in the USAF's arsenal, have been deployed outside the US.
The 12 aircraft are due to land at the island's Kadena airbase, where they will be stationed for three months.
Hundreds of protesters assembled outside the base on Saturday to oppose their deployment.
Bad weather delay
The protest was peaceful, and no arrests were reported, the Associated Press news agency reported.
"I am protesting because the deployment of America's newest F-22 fighter jets runs counter to the principle of reducing (military) burden on Okinawa.
So I made a placard and came out here," local resident Hiroshi Teruya, 66, told the Reuters news agency.
The fighters, built by Lockheed and nicknamed Raptor, are the newest and most expensive aircraft in the USAF arsenal.
The aircraft had been due to arrive from their base in Langley, Virginia on Saturday, but were delayed because of bad weather.
Some 50,000 US troops are based on the islands. There have been recent protests from islanders unhappy at the American military presence.
The jets' deployment comes as the US continues to take part in six-nation talks in the Chinese capital, Beijing, aimed at bringing an end to North Korea's nuclear arms programme.