00:00Lost about 39 aircraft, according to a report in the war zone, and that's an old one that's almost one
00:05month old.
00:06Lost about 39 American warplanes gone in a single conflict?
00:25That explosive claim is now at the center of a heated debate in Washington over the 2026 Iran War.
00:32During a Senate committee hearing, Congressman Ed Case stated that the United States may have lost around 39 military aircraft
00:42during Operation Epic Fury against Iran.
00:45About 39 aircraft, according to a report in the war zone, and that's an old one that's almost one month
00:51old.
00:52You have a replacement cost on all those aircraft. Now, understanding that some of that aircraft is not replaceable, but
00:58presumably you would have to replace it with some kind of capacity.
01:03There are costs there, sir, but I want to get back to you in writing what they specifically are, because
01:07as you can imagine, repair of aircraft is something that's very hard to calculate.
01:11We want to do a full diagnosis of the aircraft before we estimate that cost.
01:15Okay, but that's not in your estimate of somewhere around 29 cost of war that you gave us?
01:20That's included. That's what we have right now.
01:22Oh, I see. That is part of it.
01:24Yeah, but it's an estimate, especially for repair costs.
01:26He cited an external defense analysis report, saying it tracked both destroyed and damaged aircraft across weeks of intense combat
01:35operations.
01:36The figure, he said, was already nearly a month old at the time of the hearing, suggesting the real number
01:43could be higher.
01:44However, the Pentagon has not confirmed this total.
01:47Officials have avoided releasing precise aircraft loss figures, citing ongoing assessments and operational sensitivity following the conflict.
01:57The war itself began in late February 2026, when U.S. and Israeli forces launched large-scale strikes on Iranian
02:06targets, triggering a rapid escalation across the region.
02:09What followed was a high-intensity air campaign involving stealth bombers, fighter jets, drones, tankers, and complex rescue missions deep
02:19inside contested airspace.
02:22One of the most dramatic incidents reportedly involved an F-15E Strike Eagle being shot down over Iran in early
02:30April.
02:31A massive combat rescue operation followed, involving multiple aircraft types, and reportedly resulting in additional losses during extraction efforts.
02:41Analysts say the conflict exposed the extreme risks of modern high-tempo air warfare, where even advanced fleets face attrition
02:50from missiles, air defenses, and operational strain.
02:54Some aircraft losses were linked directly to hostile fire, while others were attributed to accidents or friendly fire during fast
03:03-moving missions.
03:04But the 39 aircraft figure remains unverified by official U.S. defense authorities, and is based on external reporting cited
03:13in the hearing.
03:13Still, the statement has reignited political scrutiny over the true cost of the Iran war, and whether the full scale
03:21of U.S. losses has been publicly acknowledged.
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