ABOARD THE USS KITTY HAWK -- With a deafening roar, a U.S. Navy F/A-18 approached the USS Kitty Hawk, but failing to hook one of the four trap wires, the fighter had to go around and try to land again.

The fighter was just one of many participants in the annual joint maritime exercise that ended Friday between the Maritime Self-Defense Force and the U.S. Navy, aimed at increasing cooperation and interoperability between the two forces.

But within the decade, the scene will be different. Navy fighters will be landing on the first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier to be forward-deployed to the navy base in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture.