An Air Force Special Operations Command PC-12 light transport aircraft crashed July 8 on the runway at Hurlburt Field, Fla., during a routine training mission. “Initial reports show the aircraft encountered wake turbulence shortly before the accident,” the command said in a statement on July 9. The three persons onboard were uninjured. AFSOC said it will investigate the mishap. The PC-12 is designed to provide intratheater airlift support to special ops forces. The aircraft has the ability to operate on short and unimproved runway surfaces.
A provision in the fiscal 2025 defense policy bill will require the Defense Department to include the military occupational specialty of service members who die by suicide in its annual report on suicide deaths, though it remains to be seen how much data the department will actually disclose.