The United States lost or suffered damage to 81 military aircraft worth up to $3.3 billion in the Iran war, according to a congressional report

The US military destroyed or damaged 81 aircraft during the war against Iran, according to a Congressional Research Service report released this week.

This number includes both planes and helicopters as well as drones, with the MQ-9 Reaper drone – used for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, close air support and combat search and rescue – accounting for more than half of the losses.

But also on the list are some of the Pentagon’s most valuable assets, including an F-35A fighter jet and an E-3 Sentry, the four-engine aircraft with a large radar dome atop the fuselage used for target tracking and airspace management.

The total The cost of the lost plane is between $1.9 billion and $3.3 billion, based on Defense Department replacement plans, the report said, citing figures from the Congressional Budget Office.

The total cost of the war is much higher – at least $45 billion, sources told CNN. This figure does not include damage to infrastructure at US bases in the region, including those where some of the aircraft losses occurred..

Some of the aircraft included in the count may have been returned to service, including eight F-15 Strike Eagle fighter jets that suffered minor damage during an Iranian strike on Muwaffaq Salti Air Base, Jordan, in September.

The report is based on figures contained in Ministry of Defense statements; its inspector general; the US Central Command, which leads operations against Iran; and reports reviewed by the CRS.

The report poses several questions to Congress, including whether lawmakers are getting enough information from the Pentagon about the losses to determine the effects and remedies.

Defense Department reports on Iran war casualties have, to date, been vague. Even the Pentagon inspector general’s report on losses, released in September and covering the action from February 28 to June 30, cites earlier CRS reports for some of its aircraft loss figures.

Other questions for Congress to consider are whether to provide funding for repairs or replacements; whether there is sufficient industrial capacity to meet these requirements; and the effects on U.S. military sales to foreign partners.

It also raises questions about how the war in Iran has affected America’s position outside the Middle East.

“Congress could evaluate whether losses on some high-demand, aging, and limited-number platforms, such as the E-3 Sentry, create capability gaps or increase risks in other theaters,” the report said.

Analysts have said actions in the Middle East, including the war in Iran and previous confrontations with Houthi rebels in Yemen, an Iranian-mandated group, have taken a particularly heavy toll on MQ-9 drones, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Kenneth Wilsbach told Congress. earlier this year he was the “most valuable military actor” in the war against Iran.

Forty-five people have been lost in the Middle East this year, “an alarming rate,” according to a September report from the Atlantic Council.

The Air Force has lost approximately 35% of its MQ-9s since 2004, it is reported.