B-1B Bomber Blamed for Friendly Fire Incident

A newspaper report has stated that a B1 Bomber played a role in the deaths of five U.S. Army personnel in Zabul province. According to the report "The B-1B's sheer size required it to fly a wide orbit of five miles for optimum bombing as it made right turns over the nighttime battle site. This put it outside the range of night vision goggles. The goggles were the only equipment the bomber had to identify the infrared strobe lights worn by U.S. troops to distinguish them from the enemy and to keep them safe". News accounts like this one will likely generate support in Congress for keeping the A-10 Thunderbolt in the U.S. Air Force inventory; as it is the best suited aircraft for close air support. Read more in "Budget cuts, errant B1 bomber blamed in deadly 'friendly fire' accident in Afghan war", The Washington Times, October 29, 2014.