Weapon shortfalls, ‘hundreds’ of buildings and aircraft damaged, $33.4 billion spent: the U.S. government tallies costs of the Iran war
Iranian strikes have damaged and destroyed “hundreds of buildings and structures” at U.S. bases in the Middle East, as well as “dozens” of U.S. aircraft as of the end of June, according to a government report.
Read more Supreme Court rejects Trump bid to lift block on mail-in ballots rule
The Iran war cost an estimated $33.4 billion as of June 29, according to the U.S. Department of Defense, which released a to Congress on the Iran war Monday tracking the conflict up to end-June. That includes $184 million in physical damage to U.S. diplomatic facilities in four countries—Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates—from Iranian strikes, it said.
The expenditure of U.S. munitions during the conflict said had “resulted in strategic inventory shortfalls and revealed industrial base bottlenecks for munitions resupply.”
U.S. President Donald Trump posted before the release of the report that the U.S. “is producing more Exquisite and Elite Weapons than at any time in our History.”
Read more Treasury hits Russia’s VTB Bank with new sanctions over Iran ties
The report showed a fifth generation F-35A damaged by enemy fire, the first time any aircraft of its type had suffered battle damage. Four F-15E fighter jets and an A-10 ground attack aircraft were destroyed as of end-June.
The F-35A costs $92 million per plane, while the F-15E cost $31.1 million dollars in 1998, according to the U.S. Air Force.
Seven KC-135 refueling aircraft were damaged or destroyed, while seven helicopters and over 30 drones were lost.
Read more Mitch McConnell returns to Senate after three-month health absence