U.S. military says Iran war has led to munitions shortfall

The U.S. Department of Defence's inspector general has revealed a significant munitions shortfall resulting from the ongoing war in Iran, as outlined in a mandatory report to Congress. The conflict, Operation Epic Fury, has cost an estimated $33.4 billion, with $22.3 billion spent on munitions alone, leading to strategic inventory shortfalls and bottlenecks in the industrial base for munitions resupply.

The report details losses to the American fleet, including four F-15s destroyed, one F-35 damaged, seven KC-135 tankers damaged, and up to 30 MQ-9 Reaper drones destroyed. President Donald Trump has previously downplayed concerns about depleted weapons stores, claiming the U.S. has "virtually unlimited ammo," but the report contradicts this assertion, highlighting the real challenges faced by the U.S. military in sustaining its operations in the region.

Brief written by urgent.news from The Hindu's own syndicated text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.