Forty-four troops from Afghanistan have gone missing in the US during training since January 2015, including eight in the last month. Reuters reported that about 2,200 Afghan troops have come to the US to receive military training—all were vetted before coming. “The Defense Department is assessing ways to strengthen eligibility criteria for training in ways that will reduce the likelihood of an individual Afghan willingly absconding from training in the US and going AWOL,” Pentagon spokesman Adam Stump told the news agency. The number includes two Afghan Air Force students who were reported missing after they failed to report for duty last December at Moody AFB, Ga.
The lack of training ranges and airspace in Japan are making it difficult for U.S. aircrews to maintain readiness during the pandemic, the head of U.S. forces in Japan said. U.S. and Japanese aircraft and personnel need to leave the country for high-end training, often traveling to major exercise such…