is an airfield located in Obihiro, Hokkaidō

Obihiro, Hokkaido

is a city located in Tokachi, Hokkaidō, Japan. Obihiro is the only city in the Tokachi area. The next most populous municipality in Tokachi is the town of Otofuke, with less than a third of Obihiro's population. The city has approximately 500 foreign residents . The city contains the headquarters...

, Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

, operated by the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force

Japan Ground Self-Defense Force

The , or JGSDF, is the army of Japan. The largest of the three services of the Japan Self-Defense Forces, the Ground Self-Defense Force operates under the command of the chief of the ground staff, based in the city of Ichigaya, Tokyo. The present chief of ground staff is General Yoshifumi Hibako...

 (JGSDF). The airfield is situated close to JGSDF Camp Obihiro.

History

The airfield first opened in 1937 as an airfield for the Imperial Japanese Navy

Imperial Japanese Navy

The Imperial Japanese Navy was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1869 until 1947, when it was dissolved following Japan's constitutional renunciation of the use of force as a means of settling international disputes...

. In 1956, operation was taken over by the JGSDF. In December 1964, the airfield became Obihiro Airport with a 1,000 m runway. In December 1972, the runway was extended to a length of 1,500 m. In February 1981, civil use of the airport ceased ahead of the opening of Tokachi-Obihiro Airport

Tokachi-Obihiro Airport

is an airport located south of Obihiro Station in Obihiro, Hokkaidō, Japan.-Airlines and destinations:-History:The airport opened in March 1981, initially with a runway, taking over the role of the former Obihiro Airport, now Tokachi Airfield. The runway was extended to 2,500 m in November...

in March 1981.