The Defense Department on Monday identified two soldiers who were killed, along with two American contractors, in a Saturday suicide attack at Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan. The attack killed Sgt. John W. Perry, 30, of Stockton, Calif.; and Pfc. Tyler R. Lubelt, 20, of Tamaroa, Ill. The soldiers were assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Special Troops Battalion, 1st Sustainment Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division at Fort Hood, Texas. DOD has not yet named the contractors killed. The four Americans were killed when a suicide bomber, who was able to get on base, detonated a suicide vest while in line with Afghan laborers. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack. Seventeen others were injured. Five have returned to duty, with 12 still receiving treatment at Landstuhl Medical Center in Germany, according to Resolute Support update posted on Twitter.
The Air Force on March 12 awarded contract modifications worth a combined $2.4 billion to Boeing to procure an undisclosed number of E-7 Wedgetail as part of the program's engineering and manufacturing development phase and continue work on the airborne battle management aircraft’s radar.