Direct proof of use
The AGM-114 Hellfire missile family is directly documented in the Afghanistan war through official U.S. military reporting and later strike reporting. A 2016 DVIDS story from Jalalabad Airfield said MQ-1B Predators in Operation Freedom's Sentinel carried two AGM-114 Hellfire missiles and provided strike, coordination, and reconnaissance capability in Afghanistan.
A separate DVIDS image caption from Kunduz recorded U.S. Army Task Force Griffin soldiers loading an AGM-114 Hellfire missile on an AH-64E Apache on May 31, 2017, while supporting U.S. Forces Afghanistan, Operation Freedom's Sentinel, and the Resolute Support Mission.
Sources: DVIDS Jalalabad Predators, DVIDS Loading a Hellfire in Kunduz
Timeline
By February 2016, U.S. Air Force MQ-1B Predator detachments at Jalalabad were flying combat air patrols in support of Operation Freedom's Sentinel with AGM-114 Hellfire missiles available for dynamic targets. In May 2017, AH-64E Apache crews in Kunduz were photographed loading Hellfires for U.S. Forces Afghanistan support missions.
In January 2020, The War Zone reported that the AGM-114R9X, a reported non-explosive Hellfire derivative, had seen its first known operational use in Afghanistan in a Kunduz strike targeting a Taliban commander. That report identifies the weapon as a specialized Hellfire variant and attributes the local strike account to Afghan reporting and ministry statements.
Sources: DVIDS Jalalabad Predators, DVIDS Loading a Hellfire in Kunduz, TWZ R9X Afghanistan Battlefield
Operational role
In Afghanistan, Hellfire use was tied to precision air-to-ground fire from remotely piloted aircraft and attack helicopters rather than ground transfer to Afghan forces. The DVIDS Jalalabad account describes the Predator's Afghanistan mission as intelligence collection with a secondary role against dynamic execution targets, supported by laser designation and Hellfire missiles.
The Kunduz Apache image documents the same missile family in the attack-helicopter role during the Resolute Support and Operation Freedom's Sentinel phase. The reported R9X strike points to a narrower targeted-strike role against a Taliban commander, distinct from ordinary high-explosive Hellfire employment.
Sources: DVIDS Jalalabad Predators, DVIDS Loading a Hellfire in Kunduz, TWZ R9X Afghanistan Battlefield
