The United States has lost or sustained damage to at least 81 military aircraft and drones since the beginning of the war in Iran earlier this year, a loss totalling nearly $3.3 billion, according to a new Congressional Research Service report. The rare official account of the damages showed the losses include some of America’s most advanced warplanes, like the F-35A Lightning II stealth fighter, F-15 jets and MQ-9 Reaper drones.
Each F-15 jet is worth more than $30 million, while the 45 MQ-9 Reaper drones are estimated to be valued between $30 and $50 million each. The fifth-generation F-34A, one of America’s most advanced warplanes, is worth more than $92 million.
Per the report, titled “US Aircraft Combat Damage in Operation Epic Fury: Considerations for Congress”, the American forces lost 12 F-15E aircraft, one F-35A Lightning II fighter aircraft, two A-10 Thunderbolt II ground-attack aircraft, and seven KC-135 Stratotanker aerial refuelling aircraft during mission in the Middle East.
Three of the F-15 jets were shot down in friendly fire over Kuwait on March 2, with another shot down over Iran the following month, the report showed. It added that at least eight other F-15Es also sustained minor damage during Iran’s airstrikes on the Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan on September 9 and 10.
Additionally, the US military also lost one E-3 Sentry airborne early warning-and-control system aircraft, two MC-130J Commando II special operations aircraft, one HH-60W Jolly Green II combat search-and-rescue helicopter, one MQ-4C Triton high-altitude long-endurance uncrewed aircraft, three MQ-1 multi-role uncrewed aircraft, and 45 MQ-9 Reaper multi-role uncrewed aircraft.
E-3 Sentry surveillance plane — an ageing but essential platform that is based on the Boeing 707 airliner– costs $270 million each. The US had just 32 of them in operation as of 2015, according to the Air Force.
In combat, the US also lost one AH-64 Apache attack helicopter, four AH-6 Little Bird light attack helicopters and one MH-60 Sea Hawk maritime helicopter.
The report cautioned that the figure could change, as some combat information remains classified, as military operations continue, and responsibility for some incidents remains difficult to establish. It added that some of the damaged aircraft may also return to service following repairs.
The cost of weapons used by the US military in Iran has also jumped by more than $6 billion in just over a month, from $21.7 billion listed in the latest Congressional Budget Office report to $28.1 billion in US Central Command’s estimate.
The White House and the Pentagon have not commented on the reports yet.
