Here’s what Iran’s attacks have damaged across the US military’s Mideast footprint
As the war with Iran reaches its fourth week, the costs to the U.S. are rapidly rising.
Iranian strikes have hit U.S. bases and military equipment across the Middle East, disrupting where some American troops can live and work, even as the Pentagon continues operations in the region.
The Wall Street Journal reported that battle damage and replacement costs from the war’s first three weeks could reach about $1.4 billion to $2.9 billion, citing Elaine McCusker, a former Pentagon budget official who has been tracking the conflict’s cost for the American Enterprise Institute.
McCusker’s breakdown of the costs so far:
- F-15E Strike Eagle fighter jets: About $100 million each
- F-35A Lightning II fighter jets: About $82.5 million each
- KC-46 Pegasus refueling planes: About $165 million each (Replacing KC-135)
- MQ-9 Reaper drones: At least $16 million each
- MQ-9B SkyGuardian drones: Around $30 million each
- AN/TPY-2 radar: At least $300 million
- AN/FPS-132 early-warning radar: About $1 billion
Why the reported damage matters
The damage has affected both military infrastructure and daily operations. The New York Times reported that damage at several U.S. bases in the region has made it difficult for many service members to work there for long stretches.
The Times also reported that U.S. Central Command moved thousands of troops from their original bases after the war began, sending some to Europe and keeping others elsewhere in the Middle East.
According to The Times, current and former military officials said the dispersed setup has made the campaign harder to carry out. The Journal separately reported that the Pentagon would likely seek to replace some damaged or destroyed systems through a $200 billion supplemental budget request the Trump administration is preparing to send to Congress.
What the war has damaged or destroyed
Iranian ballistic missiles and drones caused most of the damage on the ground. The Journal reported that a Kuwaiti F/A-18 mistakenly shot down three U.S. F-15E Strike Eagles on March 1, though all six crew members survived after ejecting. The newspaper also reported that an F-35A made an emergency landing on March 19 and that Iran claimed it had fired on the aircraft.
Six crew members were killed when two KC-135 tankers collided over Iraq on March 12, and five more KC-135s were damaged in an Iranian missile strike on Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia. More than a dozen MQ-9 Reaper drones have been lost since the war began, including some shot down in flight and others destroyed on the ground.
The Air Force has said the KC-46A Pegasus will replace the aging KC-135 fleet, which has served as its main aerial refueling tanker since 1957.
Iranian strikes have also damaged an early-warning radar at Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar and communications equipment at the headquarters of the U.S. Fifth Fleet in Bahrain.
In Kuwait, The Times reported that strikes damaged aircraft-related structures as well as maintenance and fuel facilities. The attack on Port Shuaiba that killed six U.S. service members also destroyed an Army tactical operations center.
Some troops have been operating from makeshift locations described by one official as “alternative” sites. The Tasnim News Agency said Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps urged people in the region to report the locations of dispersed American troops, according to The Times.
Ella Rae Greene, Editor In Chief
