An MH-60S Seahawk sits on the deck of the USS Tripoli (LHA-7) while underway in the US Central Command Area of responsibility during Operation Epic Fury, April 1, 2026. A similar helicopter was one of several dozen manned and unmanned aircraft lost in the conflict. (US Navy)
Operation Epic Fury’s Epic Costs and Epic Losses
The damage to American military bases and hardware is far more significant than officials have previously reported.
A new report says the United States spent $33.4 billion on Operation Epic Fury in just four months.
The Department of Defense Office of the Inspector General released the report, which looks at the period from Feb. 28 to June 30, on Monday. It details expenditures totaling $22.3 billion in expended munitions, $3.7 billion in equipment losses, and $7.4 billion in other incremental costs.
The 44-page report shows that damage to American military bases and hardware has been more extensive than was previously publicly known.
Operation Epic Fury has also “resulted in strategic inventory shortfalls and revealed industrial base bottlenecks for munitions resupply,” the report says.
President Donald Trump and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth have repeatedly denied reports that American munition stockpiles are running low. Trump asserted in a Truth Social post on Aug. 6 that the US “has massive amounts of ‘munitions,’ especially of certain types.”
In another post about a month later, Trump said the US has “virtually unlimited amounts of Mid to High Grade Ammunition, far more than we could ever use for this, or for any other War… We are stockpiling and preparing for any contingency that could happen.” And on Sept. 14, he wrote, the US “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.”
Yet as Trump has been making these statements, the various branches of the US military have been signing expensive contracts to boost production of Patriot, THAAD, and Tomahawk missiles. The US Navy has signed contracts to buy Blackbeard hypersonic missiles and more Mark 48 torpedoes. And the US Army has signed a contract to buy more M110 sniper rifles.
Servicemembers Killed in Operation Epic Fury
Seven servicemembers were killed in action and seven were killed in “non-hostile events” from Feb. 28 through June 30. Four more servicemembers were killed in July, bringing the total number of service members lost in the conflict to 18.
Another 417 servicemembers were injured during the four-month period.
Military Bases Damaged or Destroyed in Operation Epic Fury
“Iranian strikes damaged and destroyed hundreds of buildings and structures at US bases in Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Oman, and Jordan,” the report says.
The US Navy had downplayed the damage to Naval Support Activity Bahrain, saying Iranian drone and missile attacks on Feb. 28 had not interfered with military operations. The extent of the damage became more clear recently when Acting Secretary of the Navy Hung Cao said the Iranian military “blew the hell” out of NSA Bahrain. Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Daryl Caudle has said the Navy will not be able to use the base “any time soon.”
The Inspector General’s report does not outline the estimated damage to the bases, or anticipated costs or timelines for rebuilding.
Military Aircraft Lost in Operation Epic Fury
More than 20 manned aircraft and more than 30 unmanned aerial systems were lost in Operation Epic Fury between Feb. 28 and June 30.
| Aircraft | Number Lost | How Lost |
| F-15E Strike Eagle | 4 | 3 destroyed by friendly fire 1 destroyed by enemy fire |
| F-35A Lightning II | 1 | Damaged by enemy fire |
| A-10 Thunderbolt II | 1 | Destroyed, jettisoned due to damage on return from CSAR mission |
| KC-135 Stratotanker | 7 | 1 destroyed and 1 damaged in collision over Iraq 5 damaged or destroyed by enemy munitions on the ground in Saudi Arabia |
| E-3 Sentry | 1 | Damaged by enemy munitions on the ground in Saudi Arabia |
| HH-60W Jolly Green II | 1 | Damaged during CSAR operations |
| MQ-4C Triton | 1 | Reported crashed |
| AH-6 Little Bird | 4 | Destroyed by US forces as unrecoverable during CSAR operations |
| AH-64 Apache | 1 | Shot down over the Strait of Hormuz |
| MH-60 Seahawk | 1 | Crashed over the Arabian Sea |
| MQ-9 Reaper | 30 | Destroyed “in various circumstances” |
On Friday, Tehran claimed to have damaged multiple other US military aircraft at the Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan. Although a US official confirmed to the media that approximately eight F-15s sustained light damage that was repaired, the White House has disputed the claims, with Trump saying there was “No damage, No nothing.”
The president also dismissed a report from Sunday that China had supplied Iran with satellite images of the US military base in Jordan shortly before three American service members were killed in a missile strike. Trump is expected to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the White House later this month.
Diplomatic Facilities Damaged in Operation Epic Fury
US diplomatic facilities in Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates suffered physical damage worth about $184 million from Iranian missile and drone strikes, the Inspector General’s report says.
US facilities in Iraq were hit the hardest; the report notes that they “experienced 600 attacks” from Feb. 28 to June 30. The US Consulate General’s new compound in Erbil suffered damage to multiple buildings. The US Embassy in Baghdad and the Baghdad Diplomatic Support Compound were also damaged, though the latter building was in the process of closing prior to Operation Epic Fury. The total estimated damage to American diplomatic facilities in Iraq is $157.3 million.
The US Embassy in Kuwait City suffered damages worth $14.75 million.
The US Embassy in Riyadh suffered damages worth $11.5 million
The US Consulate General in Dubai sustained damage to a utility building, estimated at $125,000.
From Operation Epic Fury to Operation Economic Fury
The Major Combat Operations of Operation Epic Fury continued until April 7, when a ceasefire went into place.
It was followed by the launch of Operation Economic Fury (now called Operation Economic Outcast), which aims to choke off funding for Iran and its proxies by blocking oil sales, freezing regime-linked cryptocurrency, disrupting shadow banking networks, and increasing sanctions. The economic operation was accompanied by a US blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, which began on April 13 and continued until June 17, when Trump signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Iran. However, on July 8, the president declared the MoU “over,” just one day after the US commenced defensive strikes.
Trump has said that the conflict with Iran, which he continues to downplay, will end after the midterm elections in November.
About the Author: Peter Suciu
Peter Suciu has contributed to dozens of newspapers, magazines and websites over a 30-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a contributing writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. He is based in Michigan. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu. You can email the author: Editor@nationalinterest.org.
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