An Air Force MQ-9 Reaper unmanned aerial vehicle went down on Sunday in northern Afghanistan, while an MQ-1 Predator crashed Monday in central Iraq. The Reaper was lost during a combat mission, impacting the side of a mountain at approximately 5:30 a.m. Kabul time, the service said in a statement. According to the narrative, positive control of the MQ-9 was lost during its flight, and since it remained on a course that would have seen it depart Afghan airspace, an Air Force manned aircraft “took proactive measures to down the MQ-9” in a remote area. As for the Predator, it crashed at about 12:45 p.m. Baghdad time, not due to hostile fire, according to an Air Forces Central release. There were no reports of civilian injuries or damage to civilian property in either mishap. Boards are being convened to investigate both incidents.
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.