On July 6, 2020, a V-22 Osprey aircraft destined for the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force stationed at Camp Kisarazu successfully prepared for departure from Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni in Japan. These aircraft represent the initial batch of a total of five Ospreys that Japan had ordered in 2015, with a contract value of $332 million. Fast forward to the present, since Japan officially received its inaugural Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey, it has become the first nation other than the US to possess and operate this versatile tiltrotor aircraft. But what was the reason behind Japan’s purchase of the V-22 Osprey?