A report prepared for the US Congress states that at least 42 American military aircraft were lost or damaged during Operation Epic Fury, the military campaign launched against Iran earlier this year.
According to the Congressional Research Service (CRS), the losses include fighter jets, drones, tanker aircraft, surveillance platforms and rescue helicopters. The report warns that the total could still change because some information remains classified and parts of the conflict are still under review.
The figures emerged as the Pentagon estimated the cost of operations against Iran at nearly $29 billion. Pentagon finance chief Jules Hurst III told a congressional hearing on 12 May that updated repair and replacement estimates were a major factor behind the increase in projected costs.
Operation Epic Fury began on 28 February with coordinated US and Israeli strikes against Iranian military infrastructure, missile sites and senior leadership targets. The campaign quickly evolved into one of the largest American air operations in the Middle East in recent decades.
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The reported losses include several high-value assets rarely exposed to sustained combat risk, such as a E-3 Sentry airborne early-warning aircraft, KC-135R aerial refuelling tankers and long-endurance surveillance drones. The inclusion of an F-35A Lightning II is particularly significant because it would represent the first acknowledged combat loss of the stealth fighter.
The US Department of Defense has not published a complete official inventory of aircraft losses linked to the conflict. According to the report, congressional researchers compiled the figures using Pentagon statements, CENTCOM briefings and media accounts.
Iranian officials have used the report to argue that Tehran managed to impose substantial operational and financial costs on US forces despite American air superiority. Foreign minister Abbas Araghchi claimed on social media that the conflict demonstrated the vulnerability of advanced Western military systems.
Military analysts say the reported losses also illustrate how modern air campaigns increasingly expose support aircraft and drones to layered air-defense networks, electronic warfare systems and long-range missile attacks, even when facing opponents with smaller conventional air forces.
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Aircraft listed in the CRS report as lost or damaged during Operation Epic Fury:
4 × Boeing F-15E Strike Eagle
1 × Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II
1 × Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II
7 × Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker
1 × Boeing E-3 Sentry
2 × Lockheed Martin MC-130J Commando II
1 × Sikorsky HH-60W Jolly Green II
24 × General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper
1 × Northrop Grumman MQ-4C Triton
