Afghan Air Force pilot Hamidullah Azimi was killed in a bomb attack on Saturday.

Officials said that the bomb had been attached to his vehicle and detonated. The explosion wounded five other civilians.

Azimi flew U.S.-made UH60 Black Hawk helicopters and has been in the force for four years, Reuters reported.

The Taliban said in a statement that they carried out the attack.

He was the eighth Afghan pilot to be killed in recent weeks.

The killing appears part of a Taliban plan targeting and killing pilots with the aim of leveling the playing field as they continue ground offenses to seize territory, Reuters reports.

The Taliban have no air forces.

On Friday, the Taliban shot and killed Dawa Khan Menapal, the Director of Afghanistan's Government Information Media Center.

Just a few days prior there had been an attempt to kill the acting defense minister.

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