In two separate operations in Iraq, ground forces called in close air support aircraft, which used precision guided munitions to strike targets near Arab Jabour on Wednesday and Amiriyah on Thursday. Seven enemy fighters in a group believed responsible for a large number of vehicle-borne improvised explosive device attacks in Baghdad had coalition forces under “intense” fire near Arab Jabour, according to a US Central Command release. Aircraft dropped two PGMs, destroying the building in which they were operating. And, CENTCOM estimates that airstrikes killed 13 terrorists in two suspected foreign fighter safe houses northeast of Amiriyah.
A combined Navy and Air Force program is seeking to build a smaller version of a ubiquitous air-to-air missile that could give advanced aircraft, such as the Collaborative Combat Aircraft, greater magazine depth in a high-end fight.