Japan said it successfully shot down a mock ballistic missile late Wednesday in its second test of a US-developed surface-to-air interception system, the defence ministry said.

The Japan Air Self-Defence Force "successfully intercepted a mock ballistic missile at Japan time 11:46 pm on September 16 in a test conducted in New Mexico," said a defence ministry spokeswoman.

In September last year, Japan became the first country other than the United States to test the new US-developed Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3), a surface-to-air missile that tracks and hits incoming targets.

In its second test of the PAC-3, Japan for the first time used a missile which it had produced under licence, the spokeswoman said.

Washington and Tokyo have been working jointly to erect a missile shield against possible attacks from North Korea. The shield is planned for completion by early 2011.