Lockheed Martin on Tuesday announced the delivery of the 2,000th Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM) to the Air Force. The missile was a baseline JASSM and originated from the 12th production lot, which began in January 2016 and included 150 baseline JASSMs and 60 JASSM-Extended Range missiles. The delivery comes months after Lockheed was awarded a new $116.8 million contract to produce 100 JASSM-ER missiles by June 2019. JASSMs are integrated on a variety of USAF aircraft, including the B-1B, B-2, B-52, F-16 and F-15E; the B-1B also carries the extended-range variant. Internationally, the JASSM is integrated into the F/A-18A/B and the F-18C/D aircraft.
For weeks, Operation Epic Fury showcased the breathtaking reach, precision, and persistence of American air and space power: more than 13,000 combat sorties and more than 12,300 targets struck by April 1. But numbers do not tell the most important story. What is truly important is what happened on April…