The loss of the E-11A comes amid a surge in airstrikes against the Taliban, even as the U.S. government works to negotiate a peace deal with the group, which could include American troop withdrawals. U.S. military aircraft employed approximately 7,423 munitions – a total that includes both bombs and missiles – during operations in Afghanistan in 2019, the highest such figure since 2011, according to U.S. Air Forces Central Command. This follows a trend dating back to at least 2018, when American aircraft employed 7,362 munitions.

BACN has been an instrumental part of thousands of strikes already, including 7,000 in 2016 alone, according to figures the U.S. Air Force provided The War Zone with three years ago. On Feb. 14, 2017, one of the service's E-11As flew the 10,000th BACN sortie in Afghanistan.

We will continue to update this story as more information becomes available.

UPDATE: 11:35am EST

Fox News has now reported that there were five individuals on board the E-11A at the time of the incident, according to U.S. officials, but it remains unclear if there were any survivors. Those same officials have denied the Taliban's claims that the group shot down the plane.

UPDATE: 11:55am EST

General David Goldfein, Chief of Staff of the U.S. Air Force, has now publicly confirmed that the E-11A did crash in Afghanistan, but has not yet offered any details on the circumstances surrounding the event.