US Central Command Air Forces said that, on Dec. 22, its aircraft flew 22 close air support missions in support of Coalition ground forces in Iraq. USAF F-15s flew CAS missions near Samarra, attacking an enemy bunker with a PGM. F-16 Fighting Falcons provided close air support to coalition troops in contact with anti-Iraqi forces near Balad, while other F-16s provided CAS to troops in contact near Bayji, Kirkuk, and Tikrit. In Afghanistan, Air Force A-10s and RAF GR-7s provided close air support to coalition forces in contact with enemy troops near Orgun-E. Other A-10s were engaged near Asadabad.
Anduril and General Atomics will develop their Collaborative Combat Aircraft for the Air Force, beating out Boeing, Lockheed Martin, and Northrop Grumman, the service announced on April 24. But any of the non-selected companies can compete to actually manufacture the eventual design, the Air Force said.