The Air Force co-opted one of its newest airlifters to cut down a growing backlog of supplies needed urgently for coalition forces fighting the Taliban near the Pakistan-Afghanistan border. Air Force journalist Maj. Ann Peru Knabe reports that USAF C-130s normally make Operation Mountain Fury deliveries, but the need for multiple, large drops made the C-17 “perfect.” Loading up at Bagram AB, Afghanistan, a C-17 aircrew rigged recycled milk crates to cushion a load of more than 50,000 pounds, comprising 40 bundles of bullets, explosives, and rockets.
The Pentagon has concluded a new agreement to buy laser-guidance kits that turn rockets into drone-killing weapons. BAE Systems and the Defense Department announced a framework deal of up to seven years for 25,000 Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System guidance kits annually for the U.S. military.