An MQ-9A Reaper unmanned aerial vehicle took out enemy combatants with a Hellfire missile May 18 in Kandahar, Afghanistan, Air Forces Central announced May 19. These combatants were engaging friendly forces with rocket-propelled grenades. Also on that day, A B-1B bomber dropped 500-pound joint direct attack munitions on enemy combatants that were engaging friendly forces in Deh Chopan, Afghanistan.
A combined Navy and Air Force program is seeking to build a smaller version of a ubiquitous air-to-air missile that could give advanced aircraft, such as the Collaborative Combat Aircraft, greater magazine depth in a high-end fight.