Redstone Rocket:
After a decade on the job, one radar site continues to be a beacon of peace and stability in a sometimes unstable region.
Japanese dignitaries, international military leaders, warfighters and civilians gathered on the northern edge of the Japanese island of Honshu to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the first operational Army Navy/Transportable Radar Surveillance and Control Model 2 forward-based mode radar located at the Shariki Communications Site during a ceremony Oct. 17.
The AN/TPY-2 FBM radar, operated by the 10th Missile Defense Battery, was activated on Sept. 26, 2006, and the Shariki site became the first military installation to open in Japan since the end of World War II.
“We received a presidential directive to activate the site as part of a ballistic missile defense system,” said Lorenzo Mack, acting deputy director, Space and Missile Defense Command/Army Forces Strategic Command Future Warfare Center. “In February 2006, we deployed the radar and achieved partial mission capability in September 2006 and that led to full mission capability shortly thereafter. This system is part of the SMDC level-one priority to protect the homeland.
“I am very proud of this system. To see this started in 2006 and see the contributions it makes in terms of indications and warnings to the homeland, as well as our regional allies, is extremely gratifying.”
The FBM radar acts as a forward-based sensor for the system, detecting ballistic missiles early in their flight and providing precise tracking information for use by the system. It is a transportable X-band, high-resolution, phased-array radar designed for ballistic missile defense.
Vice Adm. James Syring, director of the Missile Defense Agency, talked about the importance of the FBM, which began as an MDA asset.
“It is an honor to be here today to be a part of this historic moment and be able to say we commemorate 10 years of service to one of the most powerful missile defense radars that we have in the world,” Syring said. “We are not just recognizing the radar, but we are recognizing the joint force and the people who operate the radar and the importance of the cooperation we have in the surrounding communities.”
The 10th MDB Soldiers in Shariki fall under the command and control of the 94th Army Air and Missile Defense Command, located at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii. The battery, nicknamed the “Samurai Battery,” provides long-range detection, classification and tracking of ballistic missile threats in support of homeland defense as well as the Pacific theater of operations.