About 98 percent of those US military personnel injured in Afghanistan who needed transport to out-of-country medical facilities have survived, Air Force Secretary Michael Donley said Friday. Every day, the Air Force flies about 10 “life-saving” transport missions, he said. Since the beginning of Operation Enduring Freedom in October 2001—and including operations in Iraq—USAF has airlifted 21,000 injured personnel out of Southwest Asia, he said.
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.