The Congressional Research Service has revised its congressional report on US aircraft damage, listing 81 U.S. military aircraft as lost or damaged since Operation Epic Fury began on Feb. 28. The Oct. 5 update nearly doubles the 42 aircraft counted in May and pulls together losses from crashes, emergency landings, combat damage, and deliberate destruction during rescue operations.
The new total reaches beyond one category of aircraft and one kind of incident. It includes jets damaged in a September Iranian strike on a base in Jordan, helicopter losses drawn from a Pentagon inspector general report, and a sharply higher count of Reaper drones.
Western Iraq and the Arabian Sea
The deadliest loss on the list remains the March 12 crash of a KC-135 Stratotanker in western Iraq, which killed all six crew members. Another KC-135 made an emergency landing at Ben Gurion Airport in Israel, and Central Command said that loss was not the result of hostile or friendly fire.
On July 1, an MH-60S Sea Hawk from George H.W. Bush made an emergency landing in the Arabian Sea. The Navy said there was no indication of hostile action in that incident. Three of the four crew members aboard the helicopter were recovered, and the Navy identified Cmdr. Gabriel Edwards as the fourth crew member and commanding officer of Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 5.
Iran missions and rescue damage
Other losses came during a rescue mission over Iran in April. An F-15E Strike Eagle was shot down while trying to recover a two-person crew, and both crew members were rescued in separate search-and-rescue operations. The F-15E Strike Eagle is one of 12 Strike Eagles on the list.
Dan Caine, the Joint Chiefs chairman and an Air Force general, said an A-10 Thunderbolt II supporting the rescue mission crashed after taking enemy fire. Caine said the pilot flew the damaged A-10 out of Iran and ejected over friendly territory, where the pilot was quickly recovered. An HH-60W Jolly Green II in the same task force was damaged by small-arms fire, and two MC-130J Commando II transports that had flown commandos into Iran suffered a mechanical failure and could not take off.
CRS count may change
CRS said some damaged aircraft may have been returned to active service, so the 81-aircraft total does not read as a permanent-loss tally. Acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao directed that Gabriel Edwards be posthumously promoted to captain after the July 1 Sea Hawk incident, while U.S. troops destroyed the two MC-130J Commando II transports and four helicopters rather than leave sensitive equipment behind.
The report also says the count may remain subject to revision due to classification, ongoing combat activity, and attribution. For readers tracking the cost of Operation Epic Fury, the useful number is not only the 81-aircraft total but also the split between aircraft that were damaged, aircraft that were lost, and aircraft that may have gone back into service.
