Henoko Airfield

Not applicable as it was not a formally closed airport. The site is undergoing a major transformation, not a closure. The area, which encompasses part of the existing U.S. Marine Corps' Camp Schwab and the adjacent Oura Bay, is being developed to construct the Futenma Replacement Facility (FRF). This construction is the result of a long-standing bilateral agreement between the U.S. and Japanese governments to relocate the operations of Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) Futenma from a densely populated urban area to this less populated coastal location.

The site is an active, large-scale military construction zone. The Japanese government is undertaking extensive land reclamation and construction to build the Futenma Replacement Facility (FRF). This involves creating artificial land in Oura Bay to host two V-shaped runways, an apron, a deep-water port, and other associated military infrastructure. The construction is an extension of the existing Camp Schwab.

The historical significance of this specific location is not tied to a past major airfield. Its significance stems from two main factors:
1. **Camp Schwab:** The site is part of Camp Schwab, a U.S. Marine Corps base established in the late 1950s, which has played a role in U.S. military posture in the Pacific.
2. **Relocation Controversy:** The location is the focal point of one of Japan's most significant and prolonged political and environmental controversies. The plan to build a new air station here to replace MCAS Futenma, agreed upon in 1996, has faced decades of intense opposition from the Okinawa prefectural government and local citizens. Protests have centered on the irreversible environmental damage to the pristine ecosystem of Oura Bay, including its coral reefs and the habitat of the critically endangered dugong, as well as broader opposition to the U.S. military presence in Okinawa.

The concept of 'reopening' is not applicable. The plan is to *open* a new, state-of-the-art military air station upon completion of the current construction. This new facility, the Futenma Replacement Facility, will then assume all air operations currently handled by MCAS Futenma. Despite significant legal challenges, local opposition, and construction delays (notably due to a soft seabed requiring extensive ground improvement), both the U.S. and Japanese governments remain committed to completing the project. The official timeline for completion and opening has been pushed back multiple times, with current estimates projecting it will not be operational until the 2030s.