A C-17 flown by airmen deployed to the 816th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron in Southwest Asia airdropped about 80,000 pounds of supplies Jan. 14 to help support forward-deployed forces and Afghan residents in the snow-covered mountains. The airlifter crew used the Joint Precision Airdrop Delivery System to get the supplies within a few feet of the target zone. Air Force officials say the accuracy of the JPADS is now within 10 meters.
The Space Force’s recent contract to Muon Space to repurpose their commercial weather satellites for military use will inform a broader “data-as-a-service” strategy for its space-based environmental monitoring mission.