An MQ-1 Predator unmanned aerial vehicle crashed Nov. 2 in southern Afghanistan, the Air Force said in a release. The service said it intends to convene an accident investigation board to determine the cause of the mishap. Before this accident, the Air Force had lost a total of 39 armed MQ-1 and unarmed RQ-1 Predators in missions supporting operations in Afghanistan and Iraq since 9/11.
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.