Japan has fired a Tomahawk cruise missile from a warship for the first time, the country’s Ministry of Defense announced on July 30, 2026.
The Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force destroyer JS Chokai (DDG-176) carried out the live-fire test in the Pacific Ocean on July 29, 2026. According to the ministry, the test, carried out with the support of the US Navy, confirmed that the ship could launch the missile in practice, factoring in the proficiency of the crew in conducting the firing sequence.
Chokai, a Kongo-class Aegis destroyer, has been deployed to the United States since October 2025 for modification and crew training. The ministry announced on March 27, 2026, that the ship had acquired Tomahawk launch capability, making it the first Japanese warship configured for such a mission. It is due to return to Japan around September 2026, with Sasebo as its homeport.
The ministry described the launch as evidence of steady progress in the Tomahawk project, stating that it would continue to work toward the early establishment of stand-off defense capabilities it began assembling under its 2022 National Security Strategy.
The US Navy provided the test range and monitored the surrounding sea and airspace, ATLA noted, though the launch itself was executed by the Japanese crew. No comparable live-fire tests are planned aboard the other Aegis destroyers now being modified, on the grounds that the Mk 41 vertical launching system and the Tomahawk already have extensive service records with the US Navy.
Details regarding the precise test location, the target type, the flight range, the number of missiles fired, or whether a Block IV or Block V round was used, were not disclosed.
Five ships, 400 missiles
Funding approved through fiscal year 2026 covers about ¥113.6 billion ($694 million) to add the capability to five of the eight JMSDF Aegis destroyers: Chokai, Kirishima, Haguro, Myoko and Atago. Work on Haguro and Kirishima began in fiscal 2025, with Atago and Myoko scheduled to follow during fiscal 2026. The remaining three ships depend on budgets from fiscal 2027 onward.
Japan is buying up to 400 Tomahawks through the US Foreign Military Sales program at a cost of roughly ¥169.4 billion ($1.03 billion), split between Block IV rounds delivered across fiscal years 2025 to 2027 and Block V rounds across fiscal years 2026 to 2027. According to ATLA, Tokyo has no plans to order beyond that figure, and further growth in the inventory will rely on domestically developed missiles now in development.
The launch makes Japan the third country outside the United States to fire a Tomahawk from a surface combatant, after Australia and the Netherlands.