Politics · Japan · 1 hr ago
Japan’s Ground Self-Defense Force Still Uses an Outdated Combat Medical Form
Japan’s Ground Self-Defense Force still uses an old form to record battlefield injuries.
The form is based on a US military design from the Vietnam War era and is written in Japanese.
Many NATO forces, as well as South Korea and Taiwan, use a standard TCCC casualty card.
Japan’s Air Self-Defense Force has begun using the card in one command, but it has not taught personnel how to fill it out, and the practice is not consistent across the force.
Different forms could make it harder for allied medical teams to understand a patient’s treatment.
This could matter during joint operations or UN peacekeeping missions, when one country’s medical staff may treat another country’s personnel.
The services have not moved to a shared medical record system.
The Ground Self-Defense Force (GSDF) still uses a Japanese-language combat casualty record form based on a US military form from the Vietnam War era, Toyo Keizai reports.
The article says the form is outdated compared with the TCCC card, an international standard based on a US military form.
The GSDF ordered the old form again in 2025, according to the article.
The Air Self-Defense Force’s Air Defense Command began using a Japanese version of the TCCC card in August 2024, but the article says training on how to fill it out was not provided.
The article warns that different forms could complicate care when Japanese and allied forces treat one another’s wounded.
- Who
- Japan’s Ground Self-Defense Force.
- What
- It continues to use an outdated Japanese-language combat casualty record form rather than the TCCC card.
- When
- The GSDF ordered the old form again in 2025; the Air Self-Defense Force’s Air Defense Command began using the TCCC card in August 2024.
- Where
- Japan’s Self-Defense Forces.
- Why
- Not stated. The article says different forms may make it harder for allied medical staff to assess wounded personnel.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
The Air Self-Defense Force’s Air Defense Command began using a Japanese version of the TCCC card.
The GSDF ordered its existing casualty record form again.
- GSDF form
- Japanese-language form based on a US military form from the Vietnam War era
- International standard
- TCCC card, based on the US military DD1380 form
- Air Self-Defense Force
- Air Defense Command began using the TCCC card in August 2024
- GSDF procurement
- Ordered the old form again in 2025
- Source
- Toyo Keizai, published November 3, 2026