United States will deploy 12 more V-22 Osprey tiltrotor aircraft in Japan 0107131.

The ministry said in its website that the cargo, with the Ospreys on board, will arrive at the U.S. Iwakuni airbase in Yamaguchi prefecture in the last week of the month and the aircraft will be deployed at the U.S. Futenma base in Okinawa prefecture after tests.

Despite strong public opposition, the United States transported 12 Ospreys to the Iwakuni base on July 23 last year and successively deployed the planes to the Futenma airbase in October of the year.

The Ospreys started their first training in Japan on March 6 this year.

Local residents in Okinawa strongly oppose the deployment of the Ospreys out of safety concerns and call for move the Futenma airbase, which is located in a residential area in the city of Ginowan, out of the prefecture.