What The 6 Killed In Afghanistan Tell Us About The Military Today

05:47

December 28, 2015

A U.S. Air Force carry team moves the transfer case of U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Chester J. McBride during a dignified transfer at the New Castle Air National Guard Base on December 23 in New Castle, Delaware. Staff Sgt. McBride was killed when a suicide bomber rammed an explosive-laden motorcycle into a joint patrol with Afghan security forces outside of Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan. (Mark Wilson/Getty Images)

It's been a week since six U.S. troops, all Air Force, were killed by a suicide bomber near Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan. Their deaths are a tragic reminder that the war there is hardly over, even if the official NATO combat mission is. They also provide a snapshot of who's serving, and dying, with the U.S. military overseas.

Here & Now's Robin Young talks to Andrew Tilghman, senior writer for the Military Times, about those who died, and what they tell us about the current makeup of the military.

Guest

Andrew Tilghman, senior writer for the Military Times. He tweets @andrewtilghman.

This segment aired on December 28, 2015.