JDS Azuma (ATS-4201) was a training support ship of Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force.

In the same year, the Landing Ship Support (LSSL) Hamagiku was incorporated into the Yokosuka District Force and remodeled into an unmanned target aircraft mother boat.

[1] However, at that time, with the aggravation of the airborne threat, the deployment of new-generation anti-aircraft weapon systems such as 5-inch single-armed quick-firing guns and tartar systems were progressing, and the KD-2R low-speed target aircraft provided a sufficient training environment.

For this reason, it was planned to introduce the BQM-34 Firebee, a high-speed jet-propelled target aircraft operated by the US military in the three armies at that time.

For this reason, this ship was built as the world's first platform for operating a Firebee high-speed target aircraft on board.