US unmanned aircraft crashes in S. Afghanistan
3/11/2008 16:30
An unmanned aerial vehicle of US air force based in Afghanistan crashed
yesterday in the south of the country where the Taliban have been increasing the
insurgency, a US military statement said today.
It said an MQ-1 Predator, a
medium-altitude, long-endurance, remotely piloted aircraft, crashed at about
11:20 am yesterday local time, adding that the vehicle's primary mission is
conducting "armed reconnaissance."
The US military gave no more information,
but said an investigation will be launched.
Unmanned aerial vehicles are
commonly used by the US forces in Afghanistan, with many used in bombing
suspected militant hideouts across the border into Pakistani soil.
Some
33,000 US troops are deployed across the war-ravaged country fighting an
increased Taliban-led militancy.
Xinhua
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