ERBIL, Iraq – The United States military has launched a rescue operation following the crash of a US aircraft in western Iraq on Thursday, according to a statement from US Central Command (CENTCOM). While initial reports confirmed the incident involved two aircraft, with one landing safely, the fate of the crew aboard the downed plane remains unclear.
CENTCOM, which oversees US military operations in the Middle East, released a brief statement confirming the loss of a KC-135 Stratotanker, a aerial refueling aircraft. “The incident occurred in friendly airspace during Operation Epic Fury, and rescue efforts are ongoing,” the statement read, without immediately indicating whether there were fatalities or survivors.
The wording of the statement suggested the crash may have involved a mid-air incident between the two planes. “US Central Command is aware of the loss of a U.S. KC-135 refueling aircraft,” the release stated. It added that a second aircraft involved in the incident “landed safely.” Crucially, CENTCOM clarified that the crash was an accident, stating, “This was not due to hostile fire or friendly fire.”
The crash marks the latest in a series of non-combat incidents for the US military since the launch of “Operation Epic Fury,” the codename for the coordinated US-Israeli military offensive against Iran, which began on February 28.
The accident comes just over a week after the US suffered its first major friendly fire incident of the conflict. On March 1, just one day into the war, three F-15E Strike Eagle fighter jets were accidentally shot down by Kuwaiti air defenses during a period of intense Iranian retaliatory strikes. Fortunately, all six aircrew members aboard the three jets ejected safely and were recovered.
Prior to Thursday’s crash, the Pentagon had reported a total of seven US service members killed in action since the start of the ground campaign. Another 140 have been wounded, with Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell noting that eight of those are facing severe injuries requiring extensive medical care.
The human cost extends far beyond US forces. An estimated 1,348 Iranians have been killed since the onset of hostilities, alongside 15 Israelis. A further 17 civilians and military personnel have died in neighboring Gulf states as the conflict spills across the region, raising fears of a wider, destabilizing war.
As the military campaign enters its second week, it faces significant headwinds not only on the battlefield but also on the home front. Polling indicates that the war against Iran is deeply unpopular with the American public, marking a stark departure from the initial rally-around-the-flag effects seen in previous US conflicts.
A Quinnipiac University survey released on March 9 found that 53 percent of voters oppose the military offensive. Opposition intensifies regarding the prospect of a prolonged ground war, with 74 percent of respondents rejecting the idea of deploying large numbers of “boots on the ground.”
These findings are reinforced by polling from the firm Ipsos, which found that a plurality of Americans (43 percent) disapprove of the US strikes, compared to just 29 percent who approve. A significant portion of the electorate remains uncertain about the merits of the operation.
The conflict has even fractured the political coalition of President Donald Trump, who has consistently defended the assault as vital for US national security. Prominent conservative voices, including former Fox News host Tucker Carlson, have openly questioned the administration’s rationale.
In recent interviews, Carlson has labeled the war “absolutely disgusting and evil,” and suggested that President Trump may be receiving skewed advice from his national security team. “He’s being shown polling that this war is like a 90-10 win for him,” Carlson said, implying the president is being misled about public sentiment.
President Trump has fired back at his critics, distancing himself from even his staunchest supporters within the “Make America Great Again” (MAGA) movement. “MAGA is America first, and Tucker is none of those things,” Trump told ABC News, signaling a deepening rift over the direction of his foreign policy.
The Trump administration has struggled to present a unified and consistent public case for the war, offering a rotating cast of justifications for the necessity of military action.
In one public appearance, President Trump warned that a “nuclear war” was imminent had the US not acted. On another occasion, he argued that diplomatic negotiations to curb Iran’s nuclear program had proven fruitless—despite repeated signals from his own officials in the preceding months that a deal was within reach.
Further confusing the narrative, Secretary of State Marco Rubio suggested earlier this month that the US attack was launched, in part, because “we knew there was going to be an Israeli action” against Iran. While Rubio later walked back those comments, they fueled speculation that the US was compelled to act in coordination with its ally rather than out of an immediate, unilateral threat.
As rescue crews work to secure the crash site in western Iraq and determine the fate of the crew, the incident serves as a somber reminder of the perils facing US forces in a conflict that remains deeply contested both abroad and at home.
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