The impressive formation of Japanese F-35 fighters at the Misawa Airshow

Last weekend, Misawa Air Base, on the island of Honshu, hosted the largest annual air show in Japan.

South Korea shows the runway tests of its alternative to the F-35: KAI KF-21 Boramae
An impressive massive takeoff of Apache, Black Hawk and Chinook helicopters

One of the biggest attractions at the Misawa Airshow was the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II. Japan plans to be the second largest operator of this fifth-generation fighter, with an order for 147 aircraft (105 F-35As and 42 F-35Bs with STOVL capability, which could be operated from Japanese aircraft carriers). As a sign of that air power, 12 F-35s flew in formation over the base, as you can see in this video from J-Sky:

The Japan Air Self-Defense Force is replacing its aging F-4EJ Phantom IIs with F-35s. The new stealth aircraft will join an already powerful air force equipped with 200 McDonnell Douglas fighters. F-15 Eagle (155 single-seat F-15J and 45 two-seat F-15DJ) and 87 Mitsubishi F-2 (a local derivative of the F-16, of which Japan has 62 F- 2A single-seat and 25 F-2B two-seat).