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.
Gene Smith, Former POW and AFA Chair, Dies at 91
Jan. 19, 2026
Lt. Col. Richard “Gene” Smith, who overcame five and a half years as a prisoner of war in the notorious Hanoi Hilton from 1967 until 1973, died Jan. 16. He was one day short of his 91st birthday.
