Fly
ing over Afghanistan, two USAF C-17s on Oct. 11 made one of the largest single airdrops since the start of operations there, reports SSgt. Trevor Tierman. The aircrews dropped 62 bundles of cargo, weighing about 85,000 pounds, to coalition ground forces to sustain them through the winter. The mission marked the first time two aircraft had airdropped supplies simultaneously to the same drop zone in the area of responsibility, said TSgt. Marvin Mosley, one of the mission loadmasters. It also kept convoys from having to navigate a potentially dangerous 200-mile route to the forward operating base.
The rate of building B-21 bombers would speed up if the fiscal 2026 defense budget passes. But it remains unclear how much capacity would be added, and whether the Air Force would simply build the bombers faster, or buy more.