Daily US Times, Kabul: A US military jet crashed in eastern Afghanistan on Monday, the military confirmed.
The plane crash created a mystery as local media initially reported it was a passenger plane. But now the US military confirmed the crashed plane was one of its own.
The aircraft crashed in Deh Yak district, Ghazni province. The area is known as a strong Taliban presence.
Col Sonny Leggett said there are investigations going on to find out what happened to the plane, but he said there are no indications the crash was caused by enemy fire.
It is also unclear how many people were on board.
Taliban social media accounts posted footage showing a burnt-out plane with US Air Force markings. The footage is yet to be verified.
The video shows a Bombardier E-11A is burning and grounded. This type of jet used by the US Air Force for electronic surveillance over Afghanistan.
The plane is one of only four in the whole US Air Force.
Afghan government initially claimed that the crashed plane belonged to state-owned airline Ariana, but the company quickly said all its planes were accounted for.
The loss of a US fixed-wing aircraft is relatively rare in Afghanistan. The helicopters are previously proven vulnerable and accident-prone in the country.
But it is not believed that the Taliban have the sorts of anti-aircraft missiles needed to bring down a high-flying aircraft.
The Bombardier was chosen by the US for its ability to fly at high altitude and with extended range. The main job of the US military jet is to enable better communications between air and ground forces and between different types of aircraft operating in difficult terrain or using incompatible data links.
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