Japan gov't agrees to buy island for U.S. military drills for 16 bil. yen english.kyodonews.net

KYODO NEWS - 1 hour ago - 14:29 | All, JapanThe government said Monday it has agreed to buy an uninhabited island in Japan's southwest with an eye to using it as a U.S. military takeoff and landing training site.
The 16 billion yen ($146 million) acquisition of the 8-square-kilometer Mage Island in Kagoshima Prefecture will pave the way for the relocation of the practice site for U.S. carrier-borne fighters from Iwoto Island in the Pacific, some 1,200 km south of Tokyo.
The fighters were all transferred from Atsugi to another U.S. military base in Iwakuni, western Japan, last year, making the flight to the island even longer.
Mage Island is located about 400 km from Iwakuni while Iwoto is 1,400 km away.
"Building a permanent training facility is necessary to reduce worries among local people (in Iwakuni).