Japan Air Self-Defense Force

The Japan Air Self-Defense Force, JASDF, also informally referred to as the Japanese Air Force, is the air warfare branch of the Japan Self-Defense Forces, responsible for the defense of Japanese airspace and for other aerospace operations. The JASDF carries out combat air patrols around Japan, while also maintaining a network of ground and air early-warning radar systems. The branch also has an aerobatic team known as Blue Impulse and has provided air transport in UN peacekeeping missions. The JASDF had an estimated 50,000 personnel as of 2013, and as of 2020 operates about 740 aircraft, approximately 330 of them fighter aircraft. As early as 2023, the service's name will change to the Japan Air and Space Self-Defense Force in recognition of the increasing importance of the space domain.