The first U.S. occupation troops landed at Atsugi Airfield after Japan’s 1945 surrender.
On 28 August 1945, about 150 U.S. personnel flew to Atsugi Airfield in Kanagawa Prefecture, beginning the occupation of Japan. Their arrival preceded the main landings and established an important foothold near Tokyo.
General Douglas MacArthur arrived at Atsugi on 30 August. He then issued instructions intended to maintain order and regulate the conduct of Allied personnel. U.S. forces expanded their presence quickly, and Marines landed on the southern coast of Kanagawa while additional troops moved through the airfield.
Atsugi was not the site of the formal surrender ceremony; that ceremony took place on 2 September in Tokyo Bay. Nor was the occupation identical to the surrender announcement broadcast on 15 August. The airfield’s role belongs to the transition between Japan’s acceptance of the Allied terms and the formal establishment of Allied control.