Five Friendly Fire Deaths Were Avoidable

Five U.S. military members who recently died in a friendly fire incident were the victims of bad communications among air and ground elements. The deaths occurred during a combat mission in southern Afghanistan in June 2014. A military investigation found that key personnel "collectively" failed to execute some fundamental procedures which could have averted the tragedy. A B-1B Lancer bomber dropped two guided bombs on a U.S. and Afghan ground position. Learn more about the investigation findings in "Report: Deaths were avoidable in Afghan 'friendly fire' incident", Stars and Stripes, September 5, 2014.