Final negotiations have started over the return of vast airspace whose traffic control rights are now held by the U.S. Yokota Air Base in western Tokyo, according to government sources.
The government considers the return of rights to the radar approach control at Yokota as one step in reducing the burden on Japanese communities hosting U.S. forces — one of the aims in talks over Washington's military realignment plans for Japan.
If Japan gains jurisdiction over the air traffic control operations, it could lead to more efficiency in terms of air routes for commercial aircraft, the sources said.
Under the current system, civilian planes flying in the airspace controlled by the Yokota radar approach control system covering Tokyo and eight nearby prefectures must be guided by the U.S. military.
If the air traffic control rights are returned to Japan, more commercial flights will be able to use the airspace, one senior Defense Agency official claimed.
But a government source said that even if the rights are returned it would not pave the way for more civilian flights because the area is already congested.
Therefore, the move is likely to be more symbolic than practical, another Defense Agency official said.
It was already agreed in December that the U.S. will return the rights over Okinawa Island and vicinity by March 2008, prompting Japanese officials to seek the return of the Yokota radar approach control system.