The US military has announced the loss of a refueling aircraft in “friendly airspace” while conducting Operation Epic Fury. The US Central Command confirmed the incident on Thursday evening and stated that rescue operations were currently underway.
According to the statement released, a US KC-135 refueling aircraft was lost during Operation Epic Fury in friendly airspace. Two aircraft were involved in the incident, with one going down in western Iraq and the other landing safely. The Central Command emphasized that the incident was not a result of hostile fire or friendly fire.
An anonymous US official informed the Associated Press that the other aircraft involved in the incident was also a KC-135 tanker. This tanker marks the fourth publicly acknowledged aircraft crash in the US military’s operations against Iran. Recently, three American fighter jets were mistakenly downed by friendly Kuwaiti fire.
Following the incident, all six crew members ejected safely from the F-15E Strike Eagles and were reported to be in stable condition after rescue. The US military confirmed that seven American troops have been killed in combat during the ongoing conflict with Iran. Additionally, the Pentagon disclosed that approximately 140 US service members have been wounded, with eight in severe condition.