U.S. Marine Corps officially opens Japanese airfreight facility

The air transportation division of the U.S. Marine Corps held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for its new airfreight facility in Iwakuni, Japan, on Jan. 8., marking the site’s full launch after a partial opening in October 2017.

The roughly 50,000-square-foot airfreight facility will support the Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) in Iwakuni.

“Before the new addition, we weren’t able to provide security for secured cargo, we didn’t have refrigeration capabilities and we couldn’t do much as far as sustainment operations or heavy airlift operations,” said air terminal manager Stephen Gambert.

Increased airfreight capability is necessary as MCAS Iwakuni continues to grow in population, and the opening of the station demonstrates that, “We have the facility and the material handling equipment capability to complete the mission,” said Gunnery Sgt. Esteban Arroyo, chief of the air transportation department.