Predator Crash

June 4, 2008

An MQ-1 Predator unmanned aerial vehicle crashed approximately two kilometers north of Balad AB, Iraq, on June 2, the Air Force reported June 3. The aircraft went down around 10:40 p.m. local time. An investigation is being launched to determine the cause of the mishap. This is the first reported crash of a Predator since May 2 when an MQ-1 went down in southern Iraq, allegedly due to mechanical failure.

Related Content

Virtual Events: Sokolski on Mitchell’s Nuclear Deterrence Forum, and More

Oct. 21, 2020
On Oct. 22, the Air Force Association's Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies will host a Nuclear Deterrence Forum featuring Henry Sokolski, executive director of the Nonproliferation Policy Education Center. The think tank will post event video on its website and YouTube page after the live event. Register here.

Russia, China Push STRATCOM to Reconsider Strategic Deterrence

Oct. 21, 2020
Adversaries such as Russia and China have “blurred the lines” when it comes to conventional and nuclear conflict, forcing the U.S. to rethink the way it approaches strategic deterrence. U.S. Strategic Command boss Adm. Charles “Chas” A. Richard said his command is conducting an “exhaustive assessment” of the current threat…

Space Force Launches New Operations Branch

Oct. 21, 2020
The Space Force on Oct. 21 formally stood up its Space Operations Command, the largest organization to run satellites, radars, and other combat assets for regional military commanders around the world. Lt. Gen. Stephen N. Whiting will run SpOC at Peterson Air Force Base, Colo. He has held similar positions…

Russia Intercepts USAF B-1 Bombers Over Bering Sea

Oct. 21, 2020
Russian aircraft intercepted two B-1 bombers over the Bering Sea on Oct. 20, the Russian Defense Ministry announced on Twitter. The USAF aircraft never entered Russia's sovereign airspace, and the Russian planes followed “international airspace rules,” the ministry added. Pacific Air Forces on Oct. 21 confirmed that two of its…

Contentious Corona Debates Push Budget Decisions

Oct. 21, 2020
Although the Air Force expected to finalize a lot of its budget and force-design decisions at the top-level Corona meeting earlier this month, debate and competition for resources will push decisions to a later time, Chief of Staff Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr said Oct. 21. Brown said major commands…

Top Lawmakers Look to Start Talks on 2021 Defense Policy Bill

Oct. 21, 2020
Leaders of the House and Senate Armed Services Committees are tentatively scheduling a “Big Four” meeting for Oct. 26 to begin hashing out an agreement on the 2021 defense policy bill, House Armed Services Committee Chairman Rep. Adam Smith (D-Wash.) told reporters. The Big Four refers to the top Democrats…

Air Force Searching for Savvier Sustainment

Oct. 20, 2020
The Department of the Air Force’s Advanced Manufacturing Olympics showcase kicked off this week with a look at where military sustainment has come so far and what more it has to accomplish. The event began over the summer, with multiple challenges where 64 teams can win up to $100,000 in…

GPAW Will be Next Mass-Produced, Fifth-Gen Ground Attack Munition

Oct. 20, 2020
The Air Force has asked industry to submit papers on concepts and technologies underlying a new generation of small, highly stealthy and flexible ground attack munition, called the Global Precision Attack Weapon. The GPAW is supposed to be effective against hard and deeply-buried targets. The Broad Agency Announcement suggested the…

F-22s Intercept Bears, Flankers, and Russian AWACS Off Alaska

Oct. 20, 2020
F-22s intercepted a Russian air package comprised of Tu-95 Bear missile carriers, Su-35 Flankers, and an A-50 Mainstay AWACS-type aircraft off the coast of Alaska on Oct. 19, NORTHCOM reported. The incident was one of an increasing number of Russian sorties into the Alaskan Air Defense Identification Zone in recent…