Japan Tests Tomahawk Cruise Missile from Its Own Destroyer for the First Time

Japan has tested a Tomahawk cruise missile for the first time from the destroyer JS Chokai, equipped with the Aegis combat system.

The Japanese Ministry of Defense reported on this.

The JS Chokai is a Kongo-class destroyer that entered service in 1998.

The ship is armed with eight RGM-84 Harpoon anti-ship missiles, one 127-mm gun, two triple torpedo tubes, an Mk-41 vertical launch system, a close-in weapon system, and one SH-60K helicopter.

It is equipped with the Aegis combat system, which enables it to intercept missiles.

Japan sent the destroyer Chokai to the United States in October 2025 for modernization.

Representatives of the Japanese Ministry of Defense reported that the U.S. Navy provided the test range, controlled the maritime and airspace, and supported the test planning. At the same time, they emphasized that the Japanese crew carried out the missile launch itself.

Representatives of the Japanese Agency for Defense Procurement, Technology, and Logistics stated that further live-fire tests from the JS Chokai are currently unnecessary, as the Mk 41 launch system and the equipment for launching Tomahawk missiles have a proven track record of use in the U.S. Navy.

The JS Chokai is expected to return to Japan in September 2026, with Sasebo serving as its home port. This launch made Japan the third country outside the United States—after Australia and the Netherlands—to fire a Tomahawk missile from a surface combatant.

Funding approved through fiscal year 2026 allocates approximately $694 million to integrate Tomahawk missile launch capabilities onto five JMSDF Aegis-equipped destroyers: Chokai, Kirishima, Haguro, Myoko, and Atago.

Modernization work on the Haguro and Kirishima began as early as 2025. Contracts for the necessary equipment have already been signed for the Atago and Myoko, and modernization work is scheduled to begin in 2026.

In addition, Japan is building two more Aegis-equipped ships, which are scheduled to enter service in 2027 and 2028. Upon completion of the current modernization program, five of Japan’s eight Aegis-equipped destroyers will be capable of launching Tomahawk missiles, while the remaining three are scheduled to be modernized as part of future budget programs.

Japan also plans to purchase up to 400 Tomahawk missiles from the United States at a total cost of approximately $1.03 billion. Deliveries under this agreement will begin in 2025.