Col. Stephen Bissonnette, deputy commander of the 353rd SOG stated that "[T]he devastation caused by the earthquake is truly heartbreaking...As part of coordinated relief efforts, the group will work tirelessly with our Japanese counterparts and other relief organizations to help the people affected by the earthquake recover..." The US aid efforts are conducted under the direction of Japanese government or military authorities.

[3] Aircraft from three FLSW (Fleet logistic Support Wing) squadrons were in theatre during the earthquake at Naval Air Facility Atsugi.

[5] C-2 Greyhound aircraft assigned to VRC-30 and attached to CVW-14 and CVW-5 ferried over 100 tons of food, water, blankets, clothing, and medical supplies from NAF Atsugi to USS Ronald Reagan for distribution by helicopter to local sites in Japan.

[6] Yokota Air Base was used in the aftermath of the earthquake as a landing field for commercial flights as Tokyo Narita Airport was closed.

[10] USS Blue Ridge (LCC-19), which had just arrived in Singapore at the time of the earthquake, was loaded with relief supplies and prepared to sail for Japan.

[11] USS Tortuga (LSD-46), an amphibious dock ship, embarked two MH-53E Heavy Lift Helicopters assigned to HM-14 DET 1 stationed in Pohang South Korea.

[13] USNS Safeguard (T-ARS-50), which was stationed at U.S. Fleet Activities Sasebo, arrived at Hachinohe, Japan with Explosive Ordnance Disposal Mobile Unit 5 and Underwater Construction Team 2 to clear wreckage from a local commercial channel.

[17][18] The US Navy dispatched aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan and other vessels which flew a series of helicopter operations.

Davis characterized the exposure as comparable to routine civilian activities and reiterated the US Navy's commitment to the relief operation.

One helicopter made a landing at Fukushima Airport after experiencing rotor icing and exposed some Australian and New Zealand search and rescue team members to low levels of radiation.

[21] Three years after the accident, servicemen who were part of the operation have reported radiation-related disorders, including cancers, thyroid disease, uterine bleeding and other ailments.

MV Westpac Express, a civil-registered fast ferry chartered by the Marine Corps, was made available to transport equipment from Okinawa to Honshu.

The ship moved 450 tons of cargo, including 7-ton trucks, fuel tankers, generators and water tanks from Okinawa to Iwakuni, Japan, arriving 15 March.

At a Town Hall meeting, Colonel "Otto" Feather, the Commander of the 374th Air Wing USAF, presented an overview of joint forces operations in support of the Japanese and emphasized teamwork between various players.

He stated that "we are very blessed" to be in Japan because it had a highly sophisticated set of technologies to minimize the damage but that the personnel, logistic and financing problems were formidable.

US military personnel stationed at the Air Base expressed interest in making cash donations – in dollars or yen – to the American Red Cross and other organizations working in the Japanese relief effort.

[30] Concerns over the uncertainty of the radiation situation and reducing the burden of supporting families while conducting relief operations and the related troop movements led to the relocation program.

[32][not specific enough to verify] USS Tortuga conducts an emergency recall of all personnel onboard and is underway at 19:00 en route Pohang, South Korea to on load MH-53E helicopters from HM-14 Detachment 1.

About a hundred airmen and three MC-130P Combat Shadows, with 19 maintenance personnel, from the 353rd Special Operations Group deployed on 12 March, one day after the earthquake.

Col. Stephen Bissonnette, deputy commander of the 353rd SOG stated that "[T]he devastation caused by the earthquake is truly heartbreaking...As part of coordinated relief efforts, the group will work tirelessly with our Japanese counterparts and other relief organizations to help the people affected by the earthquake recover..."[33] Four additional Marine KC-130J aircraft from VMGR-152 deployed from MCAS Futenma along with nearly 80 maintainers, effectively relocating the squadron to the Japanese Mainland.

These two elements formed the initial core of the United States Forces Japan (USFJ) Radiological Consequence Management Team (RCMT) whose mission was to advise Lieutenant General Burton Field Commander USFJ on matters related to the nuclear fuel cycle, potential hazards, and potential mitigation of a radiological incident.

[36] The USS George Washington was docked for maintenance in Yokosuka, about 175 miles (280 kilometers) from the plant, when instruments detected the radiation at 7 am Tuesday (6 p.m.

[48][49] 500,000 gallons of fresh water has been provided from the US Navy to support cooling efforts at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.

[50] US troops will begin to withdraw from the Tohoku coastline and return to their bases, and the US-Japan Joint Cooperation Center in Sendai has closed down.

[53] United States Department of Defense releases location-based radiation dose estimates for U.S. personnel involved in Operation Tomodachi on the Environmental Health Surveillance Registries website.

"[62] On 10 April 2011, Japan's Prime Minister, Naoto Kan, visited Camp Sendai to talk to U.S. service members.