Iran16 September, 20263 min read
Pentagon Inspector General Says Iran War Drove U.S. Munitions Shortage After Epic Fury
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Pentagon IG reports US ammunition shortfall and supply-chain bottlenecks after Iran war. Iranian strikes damaged hundreds of buildings and dozens of aircraft at US bases.
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Pentagon tally vs Trump
A Pentagon inspector general report published this Monday, September 14, said the United States faces a shortage of munitions after the intense use of weapons during the war with Iran, warning that the U.S. operation caused heavy wear on strategic reserves and exposed difficulties in the industry responsible for replenishing them. The report said, "U.S. munition expenditures during the Epic Fury operation caused a shortage in strategic inventories and revealed bottlenecks in the industries in charge of replenishing munitions," contradicting President Donald Trump’s earlier claims that the United States possessed "virtually unlimited quantities of munitions." The same watchdog account described Iranian attacks that damaged and destroyed hundreds of buildings and facilities at U.S. bases in Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Oman, and Jordan.
In its tally of losses, the Pentagon report cited four F-15s destroyed, one F-35 damaged, and seven KC-135 aerial refueling aircraft damaged or destroyed, while also including the destruction of up to 30 MQ-9 Reaper attack drones. The report also put a dollar figure on the conflict’s expended munitions, saying an estimated $22bn was spent on expended munitions between February 28 and June 30 during Operation Epic Fury, and that the war cost $33bn during the same period.
Jordan base hit
On Sept. 8 Eastern Time, an Iranian ballistic missile attack hit Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan, known as MSAB, damaging multiple U.S. warplanes, with people familiar with the matter confirming the damage to Air & Space Forces Magazine.
Air & Space Forces Magazine said one A-10 Thunderbolt II attack aircraft suffered a severely damaged wing and about eight F-15E Strike Eagle fighters were lightly damaged but considered serviceable after Iran attacked the base.
An American official told Reuters, according to Al-Jazirah Net, that the Iranian attack hit an A-10 Thunderbolt aircraft known as "Warthog," causing one of its wings to be lost, while about eight F-15 aircraft received minor damage and were returned to service.
The same Reuters account said the attack forced American forces to launch about 30 Patriot interceptor missiles to counter the Iranian missiles, and it added that U.S. officials said no American personnel were killed.
Al Jazeera’s Pentagon watchdog report also framed the broader pattern of losses, saying the report covers the first official account of losses Washington has incurred in the war from February 28 to June 30 and acknowledges the U.S. is running short on its munition stockpile.
Damage across Gulf bases
The Pentagon inspector general report described Iranian strikes as damaging and destroying hundreds of buildings and facilities at U.S. bases across Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Oman, and Jordan during the war’s initial months. Al Jazeera said the report published on Monday by the Department of Defense inspector general offered the first official account of losses from February 28 to June 30, and it reported that the Defense Department has reported at least 11 U.S. military personnel were "killed in action" while seven died in "non-hostile events." Al Jazeera further detailed that at least six personnel were killed at Kuwait’s Port Shuaiba on March 1, and it said three at Jordan’s Muwaffaq al-Salti airbase on July 17, while one was killed at Iraq’s Erbil airbase on July 19.
A separate CBS News account, as relayed by Al-Manar TV Lebanon, said newly revealed photographs showed extensive damage to buildings, vehicles, and military equipment at multiple U.S. positions, including a direct hit on the rear section of a Boeing E-3 Sentry aircraft at Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia. The same CBS-linked report said a U.S. troop told CBS News, "This is major damage to our bases that hasn't been communicated to the American public," and it added that the Pentagon’s inspector general disclosed up to $3.7 billion in U.S. equipment losses during the war, including nearly 60 aircraft.