A US service member was killed in an improvised explosive device blast on Tuesday while on patrol in eastern Afghanistan, the Pentagon announced. There were no other casualties in the blast in the Nangarhar province, Defense Department spokesman Peter Cook said during a Tuesday briefing. The service member was conducting operations with Afghan forces as part of an overall counterterrorism mission against ISIS, according to an Operation Resolute Support statement. The name and specific service has not been released.
General Atomics, the maker of one of the Air Force’s first Collaborative Combat Aircraft, has ambitious plans for its family of semi-autonomous drones beyond the FQ-42, including a flying-wing aircraft capable of carrying out both reconnaissance and strike missions. Meanwhile, the Air Force Research Laboratory announced a new program to…