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.
The emphasis on speed in the Pentagon’s newly unveiled slate of acquisition reforms may come with increased near-term cost increases, analysts say. But according to U.S. defense officials, the new weapons-buying construct provides the military with enough flexibility to prevent runaway budget overruns in major programs.
