Japan: MSDF’s 1st woman destroyer captain appointed

Japan’s Maritime Self-Defense Force’s first woman destroyer captain assumed her duties Monday, taking the helm of the destroyer Yamagiri based at the Yokosuka Naval Base southwest of Tokyo. Cmdr Miho Otani, 44, who will be in charge of about 220 crew on the destroyer, said in a written statement that she wants to set a good example in fulfilling her duties to make it easier for female Self-Defense Force members who will follow, but that she will do so without putting too much pressure on herself. An Osaka-native, Cmdr. Otani graduated from the National Defense Academy of Japan in 1996 as one of the first female graduates. She was appointed as the first female skipper of a training destroyer in 2013. Among a total of 42,000 MSDF members, 2,400 are women. The Yamagiri is equipped with designated accommodation spaces and toilets for women and has 10 female members in its...