The US military has lost or suffered damage to at least 81 aircraft, drones, and helicopters since it waged the unprovoked war on Iran, with the total losses estimated at up to $3.3 billion, according to a new Congressional Research Service report.

The report said the losses include some of the US military’s most advanced aircraft, including an F-35A Lightning II stealth aircraft and 12 F-15E Strike Eagle aircraft that were destroyed or damaged during the war.

Three F-15Es, each valued at more than $30 million, were shot down in a friendly-fire incident over Kuwait on March 2, while another was downed over Iran the following month.

Eight additional F-15Es sustained minor damage during Iranian retaliatory airstrikes on Jordan’s Muwaffaq Salti Air Base on September 9 and 10.

The US military also lost at least 45 MQ-9 Reaper drones, valued at an estimated $30 million to $50 million each. The losses reduced the Air Force’s operational Reaper fleet to 135 aircraft, a US Air Force general told the Senate in May.

The Air Force is required to maintain at least 189 deployable MQ-9 Reapers, according to Air Force Times.

The Congressional Research Service report also documented damage to an F-35A, one of the US military’s most advanced warplanes, which came under Iranian retaliatory attacks on March 19. The aircraft is valued at more than $92 million.

Another major loss was a $270 million E-3 Sentry airborne early-warning and surveillance aircraft. Based on the Boeing 707, the aging aircraft remains an important component of the US military’s surveillance and command capabilities.

The US also lost an A-10 Thunderbolt II ground-attack aircraft in April, while another A-10 was damaged during the September Iranian attack on Jordan.

The reported losses highlight the significant material costs incurred by the US military during the war on Iran, involving some of its most expensive and strategically important aircraft.

US congressional assessment warns of inflation, weapons shortages as war against Iran runs up $38-billion bill

The war against Iran has cost the US at least $38 billion through the end of July and is expected to further fuel inflation, a congressional assessment shows.

The US and the Israeli regime jointly launched an unprovoked aggression on Iran on February 28 by targeting Iran’s top officials and also an elementary school in Minab, south of the country, killing 168 children, teachers, and parents.

In response, the Iranian Armed Forces launched powerful retaliatory attacks against US and Israeli assets in the region, dealing heavy blows to the invading coalition. The war came to a halt after 40 days with a ceasefire, which was then formalized in mid June by signing the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding by the presidents of Iran and the US.

The war inflicted high costs on the aggressors while they failed to achieve their stated objectives of subduing Iran or dismantling its defensive capabilities.