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Defence analysts have argued that the removal of air support for Afghan forces was a critical error that signficiantly increased the speed at which the Taliban were able to take over the country. The claims were made in the latest episode of the popular defence podcast whiched discussed the fall of Afghanistan, the failures in the US and NATO responses and the implications for the future. ... So you just have this situation where the media environment was very unreliable, but there was this general idea among Taliban fighters and ANA forces that once the US is gone, it’s over....

"My answer is simple: I will not put American boots on the ground in Syria." If you like your boots-free Syria, you can keep your boots-free Syria. The White House reversed course today and announced that the Obama administration would be deploying special forces troops and military advisers to Syria. The new White House policy directly contradicts multiple promises personally made by President Barack Obama in 2013 that he would not put combat boots on the ground in Syria.

TUCSON, AZ (Tucson News Now) - The Defense Secretary announced today that he is recommending the elimination of the A-10, the mainstay aircraft at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, as part of a proposed military budget. Chuck Hagel made the announcement today in at the Pentagon. The Air Force has said it would save $3.5 billion over five years by cutting the entire fleet of 343 A-10s. Hagel said he consulted with the military service chiefs on how to balance defense and budget requirements.

Airmen on the ground whose mission is to help deliver close-air support will soon receive a set of tools that will help them do their jobs better while lightening the loads they're required to carry. Tactical air control party Airmen are assigned to Army units that engage in all levels of operations, ranging from dismounted patrols to convoy escort duty, and to command elements at operations centers. The TACP is the vital link between the ground commander and the combat aircraft pilot, whose job is to deliver close-air support to troops in contact with the enemy. The upgrade headed for...

12/30/2009 - KANDAHAR AIRFIELD, Afghanistan (AFNS) -- Whether they are conducting patrols on the ground, riding in convoys or performing clearing operations in villages to search for insurgents, coalition forces know members of the 354th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron here stand ready 24 hours a day and seven days a week to provide close-air support anywhere throughout Afghanistan. This includes armed overwatch, armed reconnaissance and armed convoy escort with the A-10 Thunderbolt II. "We get to work with the guys on the ground and they're the ones who are in the heat of it all day," said Capt. Doug Witmer, an...

11/13/2008 - BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan (AFNS) -- Pennsylvania National Guard Soldiers now assigned to the Kapisa and Parwan Provincial Reconstruction Team meet Airmen responsible for close-air-support missions and toured the Bagram Airfield flightline to see the aircraft up close Oct. 28. Pennsylvania National Guard Bravo Company 3rd/103 Mechanized Infantry Soldiers deployed in Afghanistan fought their way out of more than 55 firefights in 4.5 months, and in those life and death situations A-10 Thunderbolt IIs and F-15E Strike Eagles pilots were high overhead to respond to their calls for close-air support. "It is awesome that they came by. We don't...

BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan, Sept. 17, 2008 – Avoiding civilian casualties is a high priority for U.S. aircrews, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said here today. Gates came to Bagram to get a full picture of the American aviation effort in Afghanistan. Civilian casualties from American and NATO bombing attacks are causing fury in parts of Afghanistan. “We’re very concerned about this; it’s a high priority for us,” Gates said. “We work at that hard, work at it harder and then take another look to see what more we can do to limit innocent people who are killed when we go...

SPANGDAHLEM, Germany – Tracking and pursuing enemy forces on the ground should be easier for A-10 pilots with the 81st Fighter Squadron when they go downrange early next year. By the time they deploy, leaders hope the unit’s 18 aircraft will be outfitted with new targeting systems. Three already have been installed with six more on the way. The technology allows pilots to deploy laser-guided munitions, pursue moving targets at night with infrared imaging and stabilize points on the ground while maneuvering. The information is routed from a targeting pod attached under the wing to a monitor in the one-man...

WASHINGTON, June 4, 2006 – Coalition forces in Afghanistan captured an insurgent suspected of building roadside bombs yesterday and engaged a group of enemy fighters on June 2, military officials reported. In the Gumbad area of the Shah Wali Kot district of Kandahar province yesterday, a coalition patrol acted on an Afghan citizen's tip that a roadside bomb was being placed near a building. The patrol searched the area and discovered a cave. Inside, they found an extremist with bomb-making materials. During initial questioning, the insurgent revealed the locations of other improvised explosive devices in the area, allowing coalition patrols...