About 98 percent of those US military personnel injured in Afghanistan who needed transport to out-of-country medical facilities have survived, Air Force Secretary Michael Donley said Friday. Every day, the Air Force flies about 10 “life-saving” transport missions, he said. Since the beginning of Operation Enduring Freedom in October 2001—and including operations in Iraq—USAF has airlifted 21,000 injured personnel out of Southwest Asia, he said.
The Air Force overall reduced its size by 120 aircraft in fiscal year 2021, but kept about the same number of fighter, bomber and attack aircraft, according to data supplied by the service. The F-35 fleet saw the biggest increase while the B-1B bomber fleet saw the largest decline.