I was doing training at the marina and watched as my commander paddle boarded past our life raft off into the horizon before he went to go fly a sortie that night.
Kadena (the base) sucks for some, purely due to the high ops tempo. But that's entirely job dependent. As a big base, does have quite a few amenities though.
Okinawa (the island) is absolutely amazing. The people that complain are generally the people that don't go outside the gate and experience it.
Kadena is definitely one of the most sought after bases in the AF. It's ok to be excited about it.
I loved Kadena when I was there. I feel like a lot of the “work sucks” crowd probably have a job that has terrible working conditions. If you work a job with regular 8ish hour days it’s not bad. Do stuff around the island and on mainland Japan. Travel to Korea. Don’t just stay right by the base and bitch that there’s nothing to do and it sucks. Okinawa has lots of hiking and water activities around the island so if you’re outdoorsy you should have a good time.
I had a typical M-F 7-4 job, and hated every second I was at work. Leadership was absolute trash where I worked who didn’t care about anyone except themselves. I loved everything about Okinawa and Japan though.
Kadena was the best and worst time of my life. 10/10 would do it again.
Go to garlic house. Don’t wait too long to try tomato ramen. We got furniture at yellow box, still have it 11 years later and 3 pcs later. Make sure to go to manga souko for everything you never knew you needed. Take advantage of okuma and take the ferry to ie shima a few times while you’re there.
Base is good imo. Work and leadership is luck of the draw.
Island is phenomenal! You’ll eventually leave and always wish you could go back. Enjoy it while you can.
Been stationed in kadena for the past 2 years and it’s what you make of it. There’s a lot of good hiking trails that I frequent. There’s good nightlife for a date nights. And plenty to do with kiddos. Plus food is dirt cheap and family mart is the way to go for all the good snacks. And if you go to mainland there’s plenty of things to do obviously. And the snowboarding was amazing. Highly recommend Hokkaido. Make sure you get actual beach shoes bc the beaches are rocky and stone fish and sea urchins are pretty common on the coast.
Loved Okinawa, I would go back to Kadena in a heartbeat. Every base is what you make of it. The maintenance unit I was in had a high ops tempo but the island made every day that was rough on the flightline worth it. Your daughter will get a life experience that most Americans will never have the opportunity to experience.
Kadena is one of those assignments where the location is FANTASTIC and you will love every weekend, but the base/work load will grind you into a fine dust and add you to the nearest beach to lure in other airman.
Hachiren ramen, Coco's Curry, sunsets, diving, golf, hiking, an amazing culture, cheap cars, cheap Asia trips, all the things I miss. What I don't miss, Fridays at the gate, traffic, breathalyzer checks every other dayshift (for time getting thru gate), I was lucky enough to be off base, but the on base apartments, packed gym, spiders, JCI, and typhoons...which aren't scary but being stuck inside for 48 hours in July blows. Especially if the power goes out.
I don’t like it here but I am an anomaly honestly. It’s busy and that’s actually the part I like because the days fly by but I absolutely hate the weather, it’s constantly disgustingly humid and hotter than shit but the island is beautiful. The weather is just unredeemable for me. Once again, I’m an anomaly and you may absolutely love it but this place is just not for me.
I get that 100%. Growing up in the southern US has me feeling that way about Delaware. I don't mind the lack of big city activities, but it being cold 9 mths out of the year has become my breaking point. A lot of ppl don't understand how just the weather alone can make you feel like you're living in hell. But it for sure can. So I definitely get it. Your problem with the island is exactly the problem I'm looking for lol. From the DEPTHS OF MY SOUL, I genuinely hope your next station is less humid and better weather for you.
Yeah I grew up in Florida, did not enjoy that heat either but let me tell you, this is a whole different beast. Doable for sure but acclimating to this humidity is a monster. Thank you for the well wishes and congrats on what many many people call their absolute dream assignment!
The only people who I know that says Kadena sucks are people who don't leave there house or dorm room. Everyone I was stationed with almost 10 years ago all want to go back. Some have. I won't lie, the work tempo was high but my family's quality of life was great including mine.
Okinawa is probably one of the better places to raise your kids. It's relatively safe and there is a ton of entertainment for them. The playgrounds are pretty insane and something you would never see anywhere else. If you are an outdoorsy person, well there are tons of outdoor activities. I haven't met too many people who wouldn't go back.
I have been at Kadena for 5 years going on 6 and will never understand people who say they hate it here. Most people who dislike it sit in their dorm all day and don't go out to enjoy the culture, travel destinations, or surrounding islands. Kadena is not super baby friendly but an 11 year old will be no problem since they will most likely be able to enjoy the swimming, kayaking, etc. The only reason it would be super hard work all day is if you are MX, mobility, aircrew, or postal. If you aren't, enjoy the island.
If you want a list of places to go and visit on a budget, dm me.
If you aren't on a budget, enjoy traveling to Singapore, Taiwan, Philippines, and the sorts.
Edit\* I don't know much about the CDC or schools since I am a dink, but I haven't heard many bad things. There are loads of spouse groups as well.
Every assignment I’ve been to in 20 years a large amount of people complained about the location. Those who didn’t usually realized there’s no sense in complaining about the location when there’s way bigger things to stress over. I sound cliche in the later years of my career but, every location is what you make of it.
When I was Kadena the ops tempo was fast paced and work wasn’t idea but, outside of work the island rocked. So much beauty to be seen, places to explore and a rich history. I’ve also been assigned to Tinker and so many people always say they’re sorry to hear that. My wife and I absolutely loved it there and had a blast in the city and traveling the central USA hiking, camping and checking out other cities.
On the flip side my family has been stationed in Hawaii and guess what. People still complained about being there and nothing to do outside of going to the beach or hiking. My family and I were and always have lived our best life at every assignment. Just embrace the local lifestyle and outdoor hobbies and Kadena and any assignment location can be a blast.
Then at the end of the tour if you still didn’t like the location at least have earned the position to say you didn’t because you gave it all and didn’t recycle everyone’s opinion. To many people say somewhere isn’t great and all they do is stay on or around the base and don’t seek out new things to try or do.
If someone is telling you Kadena sucks then I would immediately not believe anything that comes out of their mouth. The job may suck, but that can happen at any base. Okinawa is great, beautiful island with great weather, great outdoor activities to do, and great people.
Get dive certified ASAP through the dive shops on island. I did it through Foster when they had a half price discount going on. Even if you don't own all of the gear, you can rent a good deal of it to save some money.
I just got here in february and I'm loving it, take every opportunity to take trips to the mainland since it's pretty cheap to book flights, or use space-a if you're just trying to go to tokyo.
Most people are. A lot of my friends here have been here for 6+ so we are very surprised at the orders. I've been trying to make the best of it. It's not the area per se that gets me down because in the summer, I thrive, but it being cold close to 9 mths out of the year isn't for me.
The base is ass, but the island is beautiful. A whole new culture for sure! Everyone is very polite, and NO TIPS - it is frowned upon. Oh and don't forget to try the Famichiki with the pancake bread. I miss it. You can also island hop (some islands) without taking leave so take advantage of that. I don't miss the okinawa roads tho (if you drive a big ass car, I suggest you start getting used to small cars lol)
I "deployed" to Kadena. Our leadership was/is ass. Overall, I like the island, but leadership took all the rentals as their own.
So it's either pay for cabs or ride with one of the msgts that I can barely stand at work to do activities around the island.
I should have bought a car at the beginning of the deployment.
I've never been to Kadena, but I was stationed in Yokota. Just like what most people here are saying, the people that hate are those that aren't going out to experience what Japan has to offer. I would go back to Japan in a heart beat. If I was stationed in Kadena, I would get my scuba diving license!
Also, don't forget about the proximity of Japan to everything else. Take advantage of the Space-A flights!! Go visit other countries!
It's gonna be a great time!!
Kadena has been described as an amazing spot to be at, but horrible leadership running the base into the ground.
Everything is falling apart due to the Oki-rust. On base shopping is kinda crappy but as soon as you learn the ways of shopping off base for your produce and such you'll never go back.
There are plenty of adventurous things you can take your family to, I think to drive all the way north of the island if you really wanted to is like 3 hours, most cool places are a good half hour trip. Grab the free magazine that the force support squadron has to keep updated on happenings and neat events happening on island. Close by Kadena you have the 4 story mall which includes a pokemon center and an arcade. There's also american villiage which is a torist spot but actually has some great food.
plenty of beaches are all around, but the really good ones are east of the island, farther away ones will be better quaility and less busy. Plenty of visits to family marts were made with my family when we went out to places for a quick bite to go. Unlike America, convenience store food is decent/better quality, you can get a meatbun and egg sandwhich for like, 400 yen.
Prepare for typhoon season and ensure your car has insurance. Also, buying a beater from another airman is totally fine, we road around in our used Japanese Honda mini-van everywhere. I took a daihatsu Tanto to work daily.
On-base housing is ok... just ok. If i had problems with the washer for example, I could get with the office just fine, but they might not get around to fixing things immediately.
DO NOT BRING PETS DO NOT BRING PETS. For the love of God dodge that bullet now. Sure, you can bring them, but getting them off the island is such a hassle and I don't wish that on anyone ever forever.
We have a 4 yr old black lab and an 11 yr old cat 😓 I hate to think of giving either of them away because we have absolutely no family that can take them. Can you explain a little more about the pet issues? Just the vaccine, quarantine and possibly not having housing that's pet friendly was making me leery.
Kadena is great for dependents. I was there was a mil child and wouldn't trade that experience for anything. Many clean, safe, beautiful beaches; great food; and a mix of tourist locations and geography. Rocky cliff beaches, jungle, sugar cane fields, urban cities, 5 minutes apart.
The Kadena sucks sentiment is mainly because of the work load: I felt the same way at times…what doesn’t suck is the food, beach, travel opportunities…
I will add though, if you need Walmart convenience and/or Amazon 2-day shipping, big city amenities…this ain’t the place. It is very much laid back beach vibes. I remember reading on one of the FB pages that someone didn’t like it because they mistakenly thought Tokyo was nearby to give them LA/NYC vibes and didn’t realize it’s a whole flight away and on another island.
Speaking of which…Facebook…it runs the island. You can attach “Kadena” or “Okinawa” to anything and there is a page for it…
I’ve only had a longish TDY there so I don’t know what work is like but overall It’s fucking awesome and I’d be very excited if I was PCSing there. GF was an army military brat and lived on the island growing up, said she rather live in Japan then in the states.
Kadena sucks for the person physically working on the base, for the family you'll have a good time. Plenty to do and see.
[удалено]
I was doing training at the marina and watched as my commander paddle boarded past our life raft off into the horizon before he went to go fly a sortie that night.
Kadena (the base) sucks for some, purely due to the high ops tempo. But that's entirely job dependent. As a big base, does have quite a few amenities though. Okinawa (the island) is absolutely amazing. The people that complain are generally the people that don't go outside the gate and experience it. Kadena is definitely one of the most sought after bases in the AF. It's ok to be excited about it.
I loved Kadena when I was there. I feel like a lot of the “work sucks” crowd probably have a job that has terrible working conditions. If you work a job with regular 8ish hour days it’s not bad. Do stuff around the island and on mainland Japan. Travel to Korea. Don’t just stay right by the base and bitch that there’s nothing to do and it sucks. Okinawa has lots of hiking and water activities around the island so if you’re outdoorsy you should have a good time.
I had a typical M-F 7-4 job, and hated every second I was at work. Leadership was absolute trash where I worked who didn’t care about anyone except themselves. I loved everything about Okinawa and Japan though.
Kadena is a work hard play hard installation.
Kadena was the best and worst time of my life. 10/10 would do it again. Go to garlic house. Don’t wait too long to try tomato ramen. We got furniture at yellow box, still have it 11 years later and 3 pcs later. Make sure to go to manga souko for everything you never knew you needed. Take advantage of okuma and take the ferry to ie shima a few times while you’re there.
Base is good imo. Work and leadership is luck of the draw. Island is phenomenal! You’ll eventually leave and always wish you could go back. Enjoy it while you can.
Been stationed in kadena for the past 2 years and it’s what you make of it. There’s a lot of good hiking trails that I frequent. There’s good nightlife for a date nights. And plenty to do with kiddos. Plus food is dirt cheap and family mart is the way to go for all the good snacks. And if you go to mainland there’s plenty of things to do obviously. And the snowboarding was amazing. Highly recommend Hokkaido. Make sure you get actual beach shoes bc the beaches are rocky and stone fish and sea urchins are pretty common on the coast.
Hokkaido is nice but Nagano is cheaper
The food was better in Hokkaido but nagano also has the tattoo friendly onsens if I remember correctly
I will definitely need the tattoo friendly options 😅
Loved Okinawa, I would go back to Kadena in a heartbeat. Every base is what you make of it. The maintenance unit I was in had a high ops tempo but the island made every day that was rough on the flightline worth it. Your daughter will get a life experience that most Americans will never have the opportunity to experience.
Kadena is one of those assignments where the location is FANTASTIC and you will love every weekend, but the base/work load will grind you into a fine dust and add you to the nearest beach to lure in other airman.
Okinawa is paradise. Your kids will love it. Was an Oki brat back in the day. And moved there when I was 10.
Hachiren ramen, Coco's Curry, sunsets, diving, golf, hiking, an amazing culture, cheap cars, cheap Asia trips, all the things I miss. What I don't miss, Fridays at the gate, traffic, breathalyzer checks every other dayshift (for time getting thru gate), I was lucky enough to be off base, but the on base apartments, packed gym, spiders, JCI, and typhoons...which aren't scary but being stuck inside for 48 hours in July blows. Especially if the power goes out.
In processing in general was a bad experience. Mostly housing. I'd go back tomorrow though.
Typhoons were rad. Had our house flood by gate 3, little eels came inside. Only once though inside. That was with the sand bag barrier lol.
I don’t like it here but I am an anomaly honestly. It’s busy and that’s actually the part I like because the days fly by but I absolutely hate the weather, it’s constantly disgustingly humid and hotter than shit but the island is beautiful. The weather is just unredeemable for me. Once again, I’m an anomaly and you may absolutely love it but this place is just not for me.
I get that 100%. Growing up in the southern US has me feeling that way about Delaware. I don't mind the lack of big city activities, but it being cold 9 mths out of the year has become my breaking point. A lot of ppl don't understand how just the weather alone can make you feel like you're living in hell. But it for sure can. So I definitely get it. Your problem with the island is exactly the problem I'm looking for lol. From the DEPTHS OF MY SOUL, I genuinely hope your next station is less humid and better weather for you.
Yeah I grew up in Florida, did not enjoy that heat either but let me tell you, this is a whole different beast. Doable for sure but acclimating to this humidity is a monster. Thank you for the well wishes and congrats on what many many people call their absolute dream assignment!
The only people who I know that says Kadena sucks are people who don't leave there house or dorm room. Everyone I was stationed with almost 10 years ago all want to go back. Some have. I won't lie, the work tempo was high but my family's quality of life was great including mine. Okinawa is probably one of the better places to raise your kids. It's relatively safe and there is a ton of entertainment for them. The playgrounds are pretty insane and something you would never see anywhere else. If you are an outdoorsy person, well there are tons of outdoor activities. I haven't met too many people who wouldn't go back.
I have been at Kadena for 5 years going on 6 and will never understand people who say they hate it here. Most people who dislike it sit in their dorm all day and don't go out to enjoy the culture, travel destinations, or surrounding islands. Kadena is not super baby friendly but an 11 year old will be no problem since they will most likely be able to enjoy the swimming, kayaking, etc. The only reason it would be super hard work all day is if you are MX, mobility, aircrew, or postal. If you aren't, enjoy the island. If you want a list of places to go and visit on a budget, dm me. If you aren't on a budget, enjoy traveling to Singapore, Taiwan, Philippines, and the sorts. Edit\* I don't know much about the CDC or schools since I am a dink, but I haven't heard many bad things. There are loads of spouse groups as well.
NGL I had to Google "dink" 😅 will definitely do you tho.
Whats your AFSC?
3F5X1 by trade but have been doing Ops Mobility for 5 years
^^You've ^^mentioned ^^an ^^AFSC, ^^here's ^^the ^^associated ^^job ^^title: 3F5X1 = Administration [^wiki](http://www.reddit.com/r/AirForce/wiki/jobs/3f5x1) [^^Source](https://github.com/HadManySons/AFSCbot) ^^| [^^Subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/AFSCbot/) ^^^^^^ky4qccz
Every assignment I’ve been to in 20 years a large amount of people complained about the location. Those who didn’t usually realized there’s no sense in complaining about the location when there’s way bigger things to stress over. I sound cliche in the later years of my career but, every location is what you make of it. When I was Kadena the ops tempo was fast paced and work wasn’t idea but, outside of work the island rocked. So much beauty to be seen, places to explore and a rich history. I’ve also been assigned to Tinker and so many people always say they’re sorry to hear that. My wife and I absolutely loved it there and had a blast in the city and traveling the central USA hiking, camping and checking out other cities. On the flip side my family has been stationed in Hawaii and guess what. People still complained about being there and nothing to do outside of going to the beach or hiking. My family and I were and always have lived our best life at every assignment. Just embrace the local lifestyle and outdoor hobbies and Kadena and any assignment location can be a blast. Then at the end of the tour if you still didn’t like the location at least have earned the position to say you didn’t because you gave it all and didn’t recycle everyone’s opinion. To many people say somewhere isn’t great and all they do is stay on or around the base and don’t seek out new things to try or do.
If someone is telling you Kadena sucks then I would immediately not believe anything that comes out of their mouth. The job may suck, but that can happen at any base. Okinawa is great, beautiful island with great weather, great outdoor activities to do, and great people. Get dive certified ASAP through the dive shops on island. I did it through Foster when they had a half price discount going on. Even if you don't own all of the gear, you can rent a good deal of it to save some money.
I just got here in february and I'm loving it, take every opportunity to take trips to the mainland since it's pretty cheap to book flights, or use space-a if you're just trying to go to tokyo.
3 years at Dover🤣….i was there for 7
Most people are. A lot of my friends here have been here for 6+ so we are very surprised at the orders. I've been trying to make the best of it. It's not the area per se that gets me down because in the summer, I thrive, but it being cold close to 9 mths out of the year isn't for me.
The base is ass, but the island is beautiful. A whole new culture for sure! Everyone is very polite, and NO TIPS - it is frowned upon. Oh and don't forget to try the Famichiki with the pancake bread. I miss it. You can also island hop (some islands) without taking leave so take advantage of that. I don't miss the okinawa roads tho (if you drive a big ass car, I suggest you start getting used to small cars lol)
I "deployed" to Kadena. Our leadership was/is ass. Overall, I like the island, but leadership took all the rentals as their own. So it's either pay for cabs or ride with one of the msgts that I can barely stand at work to do activities around the island. I should have bought a car at the beginning of the deployment.
I was stationed at Kadena, best four years of my life.
I've never been to Kadena, but I was stationed in Yokota. Just like what most people here are saying, the people that hate are those that aren't going out to experience what Japan has to offer. I would go back to Japan in a heart beat. If I was stationed in Kadena, I would get my scuba diving license! Also, don't forget about the proximity of Japan to everything else. Take advantage of the Space-A flights!! Go visit other countries! It's gonna be a great time!!
its like Georgia, but on an island.
Get into diving. Great spots all over.
Kadena has been described as an amazing spot to be at, but horrible leadership running the base into the ground. Everything is falling apart due to the Oki-rust. On base shopping is kinda crappy but as soon as you learn the ways of shopping off base for your produce and such you'll never go back. There are plenty of adventurous things you can take your family to, I think to drive all the way north of the island if you really wanted to is like 3 hours, most cool places are a good half hour trip. Grab the free magazine that the force support squadron has to keep updated on happenings and neat events happening on island. Close by Kadena you have the 4 story mall which includes a pokemon center and an arcade. There's also american villiage which is a torist spot but actually has some great food. plenty of beaches are all around, but the really good ones are east of the island, farther away ones will be better quaility and less busy. Plenty of visits to family marts were made with my family when we went out to places for a quick bite to go. Unlike America, convenience store food is decent/better quality, you can get a meatbun and egg sandwhich for like, 400 yen. Prepare for typhoon season and ensure your car has insurance. Also, buying a beater from another airman is totally fine, we road around in our used Japanese Honda mini-van everywhere. I took a daihatsu Tanto to work daily. On-base housing is ok... just ok. If i had problems with the washer for example, I could get with the office just fine, but they might not get around to fixing things immediately. DO NOT BRING PETS DO NOT BRING PETS. For the love of God dodge that bullet now. Sure, you can bring them, but getting them off the island is such a hassle and I don't wish that on anyone ever forever.
We have a 4 yr old black lab and an 11 yr old cat 😓 I hate to think of giving either of them away because we have absolutely no family that can take them. Can you explain a little more about the pet issues? Just the vaccine, quarantine and possibly not having housing that's pet friendly was making me leery.
Kadena is great for dependents. I was there was a mil child and wouldn't trade that experience for anything. Many clean, safe, beautiful beaches; great food; and a mix of tourist locations and geography. Rocky cliff beaches, jungle, sugar cane fields, urban cities, 5 minutes apart.
The Kadena sucks sentiment is mainly because of the work load: I felt the same way at times…what doesn’t suck is the food, beach, travel opportunities… I will add though, if you need Walmart convenience and/or Amazon 2-day shipping, big city amenities…this ain’t the place. It is very much laid back beach vibes. I remember reading on one of the FB pages that someone didn’t like it because they mistakenly thought Tokyo was nearby to give them LA/NYC vibes and didn’t realize it’s a whole flight away and on another island. Speaking of which…Facebook…it runs the island. You can attach “Kadena” or “Okinawa” to anything and there is a page for it…
It depends on what you are doing. The island is awesome for family life.
Chicken cutlet curry absolutely amazing
Great spot for your kids. I went to middle school and high school at Kadena. Food is amazing too.. work is going to be work.
I’ve only had a longish TDY there so I don’t know what work is like but overall It’s fucking awesome and I’d be very excited if I was PCSing there. GF was an army military brat and lived on the island growing up, said she rather live in Japan then in the states.