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Japan Defence Ministry Develops Protocol to Shoot Down UAS in Airspace Violations
          Posted on October 3, 2013 by The Editor

The Japanese Defence Ministry is planning a new protocol to deal with foreign unmanned aircraft that approach Japan’s airspace, like the Chinese military UAS that ventured near the disputed Senkaku Islands last month. The protocol will include provisions for “necessary measures,” or shooting down a UAS, if it continues to violate Japan’s airspace and poses a serious and immediate danger to the lives and property of the Japanese public, sources said. “UAS, unlike regular airplanes, may not respond to warnings, so they represent a major risk,” Defence Minister Itsunori Onodera told a news conference on Oct. 1. If a foreign aircraft threatens to enter Japan’s airspace without permission, the current protocol says the Air Self-Defence Force should immediately scramble a fighter jet and use radio and visual signals to call on the pilot to land or leave the area. It says warning shots should be fired ahead of the aircraft if the pilot refuses to comply. But an unmanned aircraft may not respond to such radio signals or warning shots. Officials will work out measures to deal with UAS-specific issues and incorporate them into the “rules of engagement,” which set specific protocols on the use of arms. On Sept. 9, a Chinese military UAS from the north west flew as far south as an area 200 kilometers northeast of the Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea before returning by the same route. Beijing claims sovereignty over the isles and calls them the Diaoyu Islands. Although earlier reports indicated that Chinese military UAS have flown above the East China Sea on several occasions, Sept. 9 was the first time one came so close that it could be visually discerned by Japanese defence staff, a senior Defence Ministry official said. Photo: Chinese military UAS flies above the East China Sea on Sept. 9 – Japan Defence Ministry -