[1][2][3][4] Along with the 301st Tactical Fighter Squadron, the 302nd is responsible for air defense of the Tokyo Metropolitan area.

On September 6, 1976 two F-4EJ's of the squadron were scrambled from Chitose to intercept the MiG-25 of Viktor Belenko who had flown into Japanese territory to defect.

On March 13, 2009 the squadron finished relocating from Naha Air Base to Hyakuri Air Base in Ibaraki prefecture north of Tokyo, swapping with the F-15J equipped 204th Tactical Fighter Squadron which moved to Naha.

[16] On October 18, 2017 F-4EJ Kai Phantom II 87-8408 of the squadron caught fire on the ground after its landing gear malfunctioned.

[17][18][19][20] The squadron ceased flying the F-4 in March 2019, and in the same month relocated to Misawa Air Base.

[21] The squadron's emblem is a stylized image of a white-tailed eagle, a raptor which resides in Japan.