HVGP Launcher Appears in SDF Live-Fire Exercise for 1st Time

Shizuoka, June 7 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s Ground Self-Defense Force held a large-scale live-fire exercise at the East Fuji Maneuver Area in Shizuoka Prefecture on Sunday, showcasing a Hyper Velocity Gliding Projectile launcher to the public for the first time. The Type-25 HVGP missile system was deployed at the GSDF’s Camp Fuji in the central Japan prefecture in March. In the exercise, about 50 tanks participated and 69.5 tons of ammunition were used. GSDF units, including a surveillance unit using drones, coordinated to conduct operations. Meanwhile, a firing drill using the state-of-the-art Type-10 tank was canceled in the wake of a deadly shell explosion accident at the Hijudai training area in the southwestern prefecture of Oita in April. In a drill assuming drone attacks, which have occurred in Ukraine and the Middle East, GSDF troops shot down flying drones with rifles. Observing the exercise, Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi said, “It’s an urgent task to establish a new way of defending our country.” The exercise was attended by about 3,000 GSDF troops. It was live-streamed online. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]