The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism and the Japanese Coast Guard have entered discussions to move the 7th Regional Headquarters Air Station from Fukuoka Airport to Kitakyushu Airport. With the slated completion of a new runway at Fukuoka Airport by 2024, it has been determined that there is no room for the Coast Guard hangar at Fukuoka. Moving to the less crowded Kitakyushu Airport, which is also allowed to operate 24 hours a day, would allow the Coast Guard to respond more quickly to emergencies. The land ministry had already decided to move the Coast Guard heliport outside of Fukuoka Airport by fiscal 2019, but talks are now underway to move all Air Station facilities to Kitakyushu Airport to ensure better coordination among different kinds of aircraft. Source: Asahi Shimbun, 1/13
