Coalition aircraft flew 54 close air support missions in Afghanistan and 48 in Iraq on the final day of June, Air Forces Central announced yesterday. A-10s, B-1Bs, and F-15Es remained active in the skies over Afghanistan, with A-10s attacking anti-Afghan government forces with 500-pound laser-guided bombs in Bagram and with rockets near Bari Kowt. B-1Bs struck enemy forces with 500-pound joint direct attack munitions near Deh Chopan and in Khowst. And F-15Es used 500-pound and 2,000-pound JDAMs against enemy combatants near Bari Kowt. Khas Konar, Nagalam, and Worzhanah Kalay, AFCENT said.
Pentagon officials overseeing homeland counter-drone strategy told lawmakers that even with preliminary moves to bolster U.S. base defenses, the military still lacks the capability to comprehensively identify, track, and engage hostile drones like those that breached the airspace of Langley Air Force Base in Virginia for 17 days in December…