F-15Es dropped 500-pound laser-guided bombs and 500-pound and 2,000-pound joint direct attack munitions on enemy combatants engaging friendly forces in the vicinity of Jalalabad, Afghanistan, on July 5, Air Forces Central said in a release. Also, A-10s attacked anti-Afghan government forces with 500-pound LGBs near Zormat and a B-1B struck enemy combatants near Musa Qaleh with 500-pound JDAMs. All of these missions were reported by on-scene joint terminal attack controllers as being successful, AFCENT said. In total, there were 43 close-air-support missions in Afghanistan and 55 in Iraq on July 5.
The Air Force’s Hypersonic Attack Cruise Missile is behind schedule and may significantly overrun its expected cost, which could partially explain why the service is reviving the hypersonic AGM-183 Air-Launched Rapid-Response Weapon.