Pentagon officials have revealed the jaw-dropping cost of Donald Trump’s war with Iran, including billions of dollars spent on destroyed aircraft and equipment.
A report from the Defense Department’s inspector general found that the Middle East conflict cost an estimated $33.4 billion between February 28 and June 30.
More than $22 billion of that figure comes from munitions alone, raising fears that the U.S. is continuing to deplete its stockpiles as the deeply unpopular war drags on for nearly seven months with no end in sight.
The report also reveals that the U.S. military has lost around $3.7 billion in aircraft and equipment to both enemy and friendly fire, including four destroyed F-15 fighter jets, seven KC-135 tanker aircraft, a dozen damaged or destroyed KC-135 refueling aircraft, and the loss of up to 30 MQ-9 Reaper drones.
The MQ-9 Reaper drones are estimated to cost around $30 million each, meaning the U.S. has lost around $900 million on these drones alone amid the Iran conflict.
The damning report, which only covers the opening four-month period after Operation Epic Fury broke out, does not even disclose the full cost of Trump’s war in Iran.
Earlier this month, an A-10 Thunderbolt II aircraft, known as the Warthog, lost a wing after being struck by Iranian missiles at Muwaffaq Salti Air Base. An A-10 Thunderbolt II, which the U.S. has not produced as a new aircraft since 1984, would cost around $20 million to build when adjusted for inflation.
Around eight F-15 fighter jets were partially damaged during the attack as the U.S. and Iran exchanged tit-for-tat strikes in the area, although all eight aircraft returned to service, CBS reported.
The report also warns that the war with Iran is causing the U.S. to rapidly deplete its munitions, resulting in “strategic inventory shortfalls and revealed industrial base bottlenecks for munitions resupply.”
Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth have frequently dismissed concerns that the Iran war is burning through stockpiles of missiles and other munitions.
“I’ve just received a Report that the United States is producing more Exquisite and Elite Weapons than at any time in our History. They are being delivered on a daily basis to our Forces in the Middle East, and beyond,” Trump posted on Truth Social on Monday. “Our Defense Company Factories are moving 24/7, while at the same time building, on average, 4 to 5 largescale brand new Plants, each!”
Elsewhere, the report said there has been an estimated $184 million worth of damage to U.S. embassies, consulates and other diplomatic facilities in Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates as Iran fires retaliatory missiles and launches airstrikes around the region.
The Defense Department’s inspector general does not factor in the cost of Trump upending global oil supplies and causing gas and diesel prices to soar in the U.S. in its figures documenting the war’s cost.
The Daily Beast has reached out to the Pentagon for comment.
