A US Defense Department inspector general report has documented shortages of key US munitions and weaknesses in the industrial capacity to replenish stocks during the war with Iran, alongside substantial losses and damage to US military assets and facilities.
The report estimates that Operation Epic Fury, covering February 28 through June 30, cost $33.4 billion, of which $22.3 billion was spent on munitions. It says the scale of expenditure produced strategic inventory shortfalls and exposed bottlenecks in the defence industrial base responsible for resupply.
The documented losses include at least four F-15E fighters destroyed, at least one F-35A damaged, at least one A-10 destroyed and at least seven KC-135 tanker aircraft damaged or destroyed. The assessment also records losses or damage involving E-3 Sentry, HH-60W, MQ-4C Triton, AH-6, AH-64 Apache and MH-60S aircraft, as well as as many as 30 MQ-9 Reaper drones. Three F-15Es were lost to friendly fire over Kuwait on March 1, while another was shot down during combat over Iran in April. A KC-135 crash in Iraq on March 12 killed all six crew members.
The report also describes extensive damage to US military installations. Hundreds of buildings and structures were damaged or destroyed in Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Oman and Jordan. The cost of repairing or rebuilding those facilities was not included in the $33.4 billion estimate because it had not yet been determined whether all would be rebuilt or who would pay for the work.
US diplomatic facilities in Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the UAE sustained damage estimated at $184 million. The Iraq mission recorded more than 600 attacks through the end of June, with costs of up to nearly $157 million. Construction projects in several regional locations also incurred an estimated $24.5 million per month in delays associated with ordered departures and travel restrictions.
The report says at least 11 US military personnel were killed in action and seven died in non-hostile events during the war, with at least 417 wounded in Iranian attacks through June 30. Some additional incidents described in the material occurred after that reporting period, including an MH-60S crash in the Arabian Sea on July 1 and deaths at bases in Jordan and Iraq later in July.
The assessment also points to logistical difficulties involving naval bases, support ports and access permissions, including 14-to-18-day sea transit cycles associated with shifting logistics support to Diego Garcia.
The findings contrast with President Donald Trump’s repeated public statements that US ammunition supplies are virtually unlimited. Trump also said on September 14 that the United States was producing more exquisite and elite weapons than at any time in its history. The Pentagon has maintained that the military has the weapons required to fight any conflict.