Operation Red Hat

Operation Red Hat was a U.S. military action taking place in 1971, which involved the movement of chemical warfare munitions from Okinawa, Japan to Johnston Atoll in the North Pacific Ocean.

The Red Hat code name was assigned by the Assistant Chief of Staff for Intelligence, Department of the Army, on November 12, 1962, during the planning to deploy chemical agents to the 267th Chemical Platoon on Okinawa. The 267th Chemical Platoon (Service) was activated on Okinawa on December 1, 1962 at Chibana Ammunition Depot. The depot was a hill-top installation next to Kadena Air Base. During this deployment, "Unit personnel were actively engaged in preparing RED HAT area, site 2 for the receipt and storage of first increment items, [shipment] "YBA", DOD Project 112." The company received further shipments, code named YBB and YBF, which according to declassified documents also included sarin, VX, and mustard gas. By 1969, according to later newspaper reports, there was an estimated 1.9 million kg (1,900 metric tons) of VX stored on Okinawa.

In 1969, over 20 servicemen (23 U.S. soldiers and one U.S. civilian, according to other reports) were exposed to low levels of the nerve agent sarin while sandblasting and repainting storage containers. The resultant publicity appears to have contributed to the decision to move the weapons off Okinawa.

The US government directed relocation of chemical munitions from Okinawa to Johnston Atoll in 1971. An official U.S. film on the mission says that 'safety was the primary concern during the operation,' though Japanese resentment of U.S. military activities on Okinawa also complicated the situation. At the technical level, time pressures imposed to complete the mission, the heat, and water rationing problems also complicated the planning.

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