US lost at least 42 aircraft during 40 days of war against Iran: Congress

A newly-released Congressional report says the American military lost at least 42 aircraft during 40 days of the US–Israeli war of aggression against Iran, with estimated costs already reaching billions of dollars.

The report, prepared for Congress using information from the Pentagon, United States Central Command, and defence media outlets, estimated the total cost of the aircraft losses at approximately $2.6 billion.

US lawmakers, however, warn that the real figure could be significantly higher, saying it remains “unclear” whether the Pentagon has fully accounted for all combat losses during the war against Iran.

According to the document, the losses include fighter jets, surveillance aircraft, refuelling planes, combat rescue helicopters, and drones.

Among the aircraft destroyed or damaged were four F-15E Strike Eagle fighter jets, one F-35A Lightning II, one A-10 Thunderbolt II, seven KC-135 Stratotanker refuelling planes, and one E-3 Sentry airborne warning and control aircraft.

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The report also listed the loss of two MC-130J Commando II aircraft, one HH-60W Jolly Green II, 24 MQ-9 Reaper drones, and one MQ-4C Triton.

US Democratic Congressman Ed Case recently cited similar figures during a Senate hearing, saying Washington had already lost around 39 aircraft during the war with Iran.

Questioning Pentagon Chief Financial Officer Jules Hurst, Case referred to an earlier report by the defence outlet The War Zone and asked whether the Pentagon had calculated the full replacement cost of the destroyed aircraft.

Hurst declined to confirm the losses publicly, saying the Pentagon still needed to conduct a “full diagnosis” before estimating repair and replacement costs.

The War Zone report cited by Case said that the United States Air Force carried out nearly 13,000 flights during the 40-day war with Iran.

The congressional report now says that actual long-term costs could rise far beyond current estimates.

According to the assessment, replacing some of the destroyed aircraft could require restarting production lines for systems that are no longer manufactured.

It noted that the destruction of an E-3 Sentry could force the Pentagon to revive the cancelled E-7 Wedgetail replacement program at a cost exceeding $2.5 billion.

Analysts cited in the report estimated that total aircraft losses and replacement programs could eventually exceed $7 billion.

The United States and Israel launched their illegal war against Iran on February 28, triggering large-scale Iranian missile and drone retaliation against Israeli targets and American military assets across the region.

During the war, the Iranian Armed Forces managed to intercept and shoot down several invading fighter jets, missiles, and drones.

Iranian authorities have repeatedly stated that the war demonstrated the vulnerability of advanced American military systems against Iran’s missile and drone capabilities.

According to a senior Iranian officer who downed an intruding American F-35 fighter jet, the myth of radar-evading warplanes has collapsed.

“We completely destroyed a Lockheed Martin technology,” said the officer. “The myth of stealth fighters is over.”

According to officials, Iran also downed 170 US and Israeli drones during the aggression.

Iran’s modern air defence systems can easily strike hostile flying objects, cruise missiles, and small aircraft in most cases.

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