16 US Military Aircraft Destroyed By Iranian Fire, Accidents In West Asia War: Report

Last Updated:March 20, 2026, 04:21 IST

The most serious US losses were when three F-15 aircraft were downed by friendly fire in Kuwait, and a KC-135 tanker was destroyed during a refuelling operation in Iraq.

At least 16 US military aircraft have been destroyed since the start of the war with Iran, including 10 Reaper strike drones hit by enemy fire and another six planes downed in accidents, according to a report.

So far, only uncrewed Reaper drones have been brought down by Iranian defences, with at least nine being destroyed in the air, a person familiar with the matter told Bloomberg. One was hit at an airfield in Jordan by a ballistic missile and two were lost to accidents, the report claimed.

Three US F-15 aircraft were downed by friendly fire in Kuwait, and a KC-135 tanker was destroyed during a refuelling operation in Iraq. All six crew members on the tanker were killed in the accident. Five other KC-135s were reportedly damaged by an Iranian missile strike while parked at an airfield in Saudi Arabia. The US Central Command has declined to comment on the losses.

During the last large-scale air campaign that the US was involved with, the military intervention in Libya in 2011, there were only three reported combat losses over four months, with one of them being a US Navy drone.

Although Iran’s air defences were among the first targets of the US and Israeli air campaign, completely stamping them out and establishing air supremacy has remained elusive so far, while Tehran has stepped up retaliatory targets on Gulf neighbours.

An advanced US F-35 fighter jet made an emergency landing at a US air base in the Middle East after it was struck by what is believed to be Iranian fire, CNN reported. The aircraft landed safely and the pilot is in stable condition, according to a US Central Command spokesperson

ALSO READ: US F-35 Fighter Jet Forced To Make Emergency Landing After Being Hit By Iranian Fire

However, the Reaper shootdowns have illustrated one of the difficulties of trying to open the Strait of Hormuz: any active air defences will greatly complicate those efforts. Houthi fighters in Yemen shot down several Reapers in 2025.

Despite the US saying that Iranian attacks have declined by about 90% since the start of the conflict, the war continues to escalate as Iran is still launching attacks on Israel and other Gulf countries. Iran hit crucial energy facilities in Qatar and Saudi Arabia in retaliation for attacks on its South Pars gas field, marking a grave escalation in the war.

Most critically, Iran has blocked the Strait of Hormuz, the region’s maritime gateway, for the first time in history. The move trapped roughly a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas supplies, boosting crude oil above $100 a barrel and choking energy shipments. The US has so far struggled to build a naval coalition ​to escort vessels through the strait, underscoring the political and logistical complexity of safeguarding the chokepoint.

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