AirForceTimes.com, June 04, 2018 – "The whole [air attack] process is all Afghan at this point,” he (Lt. Col. Justin Williams, the 438th Air Expeditionary Advisory Squadron commander) said. “From the mission targeting packages, to weapons loading, to flying, to delivering ordnance, it's an entirely Afghan process."
That independence was showcased this month by Afghanistan’s A-29 Super Tucano (developed and delivered by Sierra Nevada Corporation and Embraer) light-attack aircraft.
During a multi-day assault against the city of Farah in western Afghanistan, the A-29s appeared to not just carry out gun runs against Taliban fighters, but also operate almost autonomously from Resolute Support.
“Of note, Afghan A-29s conducted 20 hours of support to the Afghan-led offensive,” Army Col. Robert Manning, a Pentagon spokesman, said.
“This was the first time Afghan A-29s flying from Kabul and Mazar-i-Sharif conducted airstrikes, returned to those bases, were re-armed and re-fueled by Afghan maintainers, and then returned to conduct strikes,” Manning added....
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