In a separate engagement (see above), but still around Musah Qal’eh in Afghanistan, USAF A-10s, flying close air support with a B-1B and a Predator unmanned aerial vehicle, strafed Taliban extremists firing upon coalition ground forces. The A-10s fired cannon rounds and a GBU-12 Paveway II, “ending the engagement,” reports US Central Command Air Forces.
Secretary of Defense Austin Lloyd III met with his counterparts from Australia, Japan and the Philippines to discuss bolstering defense ties on May 2. The discussion included plans for joint F-35 exercises with Japan and Australia in the coming years.