Pentagon Says KC-135 Refueling Plane Crashed During Strikes On Iran

• 13.03.2026, 11:15

It was not due to enemy or friendly fire.

A U.S. KC-135 refueling aircraft crashed in Iraq while on a combat mission, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) reported.

"Two aircraft were involved in the incident. One crashed in western Iraq and the other landed safely. It was not due to enemy or friendly fire," the command said.

According to CBS News reporter Jennifer Jacobs, six crew members were aboard the KC-135 at the time of the crash and their fate is unknown. According to flight tracking service FlightRadar24, the second refueling tanker landed in Tel Aviv.

The Shiite armed group Islamic Resistance of Iraq claimed responsibility for the attack on one of the U.S. planes. Its statement said the strike was carried out "with appropriate weapons" and "in defense of our country's sovereignty and its airspace violated by the occupation forces' aircraft." No evidence of this was cited by the group. In early March, U.S. Central Command reported that three U.S. F-15E Strike Eagle fighter jets carrying out missions as part of a military operation against Iran were shot down over Kuwait due to friendly fire. All the pilots managed to eject and escape.

A total of seven American servicemen have been killed and about 150 others have been wounded of varying degrees of severity since the start of joint US-Israeli strikes on Iranian territory, according to the Pentagon. Military spokesman Sean Parnell noted that 108 military personnel have already returned to duty. The condition of eight of the wounded was assessed as serious. In response to the bombings, Iran is striking U.S. military bases in the Middle East.