Bagram Airfield
Bagram Airfield or BAF also known as Bagram Air Base is the largest U.S. military base in Afghanistan. It is located next to the ancient city of Bagram, southeast of Charikar in the Parwan Province of Afghanistan. It has a dual runway capable of handling any size military aircraft, including Lockheed Martin C-5 Galaxy and Antonov An-225. Bagram Air Base is occupied by the Afghan Armed Forces and the US-led Resolute Support Mission.
Withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan
A major challenge was that Afghanistan would not have an effective air force before 2017, if then. As a consequence American officials said that NATO airpower would remain in Afghanistan after 2014 but will likely only be used on behalf of NATO and American troops and perhaps Afghan units that are accompanied by NATO advisers. NATO forces relied heavily on airpower for airstrikes, supply and medical evacuation since Afghanistan's roads are in poor condition and often seeded with bombs. To compensate for Afghanistan's limited airpower, the United States was working on a number of fixes, including providing Afghan forces with armored vehicles that would be equipped with mortars and assault guns. The United States was looking into expanding the purchase of turboprop planes for the Afghans. In addition the U.S. was also trying to help Afghan pilots learn to fly at night. Equally troubling was according to the New York Times the problem of medical evacuations. Because after 2014 the Afghans would almost certainly need to rely on a system that depended more on ground transportation than helicopters the United States wanted to help Afghanistan forces develop more field hospitals.