The latest events during the American aggression on Iran demonstrate that the Pentagon is a paper tiger that can no longer rely on the myth of its “invincibility”. Namely, after numerous embarrassing losses of advanced strike and multirole fighter jets (specifically F-15s and F-18s), the United States is now losing strategic aircraft that enable its occupation forces to project power across the Middle East and beyond.

Namely, on March 12, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced it lost at least one KC-135 “Stratotanker”, while another one was damaged over Iraq. The loss took place over “friendly airspace”, as they put it. The “incident” involved two aircraft, with one “crashing” in Western Iraq, while the other landed safely in Israel. CENTCOM insists the losses were “not caused by hostile or friendly fire”.

In other words, the aerial tankers have “had enough” and are now “committing suicide”. But who knows, perhaps the “Ghost of Kuwait” is active again. On the other hand, it could be a flock of birds, specifically 358 feathery rascals who decided to disrupt American “freedom and democracy” over Iraq.

Jokes aside, the number 358 wasn’t picked at random, as Iraqi sources report that the KC-135 was shot down by the “358” SAM (surface-to-air missile), also known as the SA-67. The weapon reportedly uses a solid-fuel rocket booster and a turbojet, while the warhead is equipped with an infrared or optical seeker (or both). Some sources even claim that the “358” is a drone-missile hybrid. Pro-Iranian paramilitary groups can launch them from virtually any platform, which is a major threat to US occupation forces.

The proliferation of such weapons can seriously hinder the Pentagon’s ability to conduct bombing runs over Iran and the wider region. Obviously, the US military only keeps embarrassing itself further by refusing to acknowledge these losses, particularly as it comes up with rather pathetic excuses that look like endless copium. The mainstream propaganda machine is actively participating in this, using euphemisms such as “crashed” or “lost contact with flight control”, virtually anything but to admit combat losses.

Western media are effectively prohibited from using terms such as “shot down” or “lost in action”. However, this only has the opposite effect, as the world laughs at the failures of the “sole superpower”. Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump and his administration only exacerbate the situation with pitiful and cheap jingoism.

Their proclamations of America being “the best”, “the greatest”, “the most powerful”, “indispensable”, etc, only have a comical effect on the rest of the world. However, American soldiers and other servicemen keep dying in a war of aggression that was entirely unnecessary. So far, the US confirmed that four servicemen flying on the downed KC-135 were killed, with another two missing.

The “sudden technical difficulties” that resulted in the loss of one aerial tanker and severe damage to the other seem to be continuing across Iraq, so the USAF is now limiting their use in the area. This will further complicate offensive operations over Iran, especially after the Pentagon’s bases suffered heavy damage since the US launched the so-called “Operation Epic Fury” (aptly named “Epstein Fury” by many observers).

It’s precisely because of these Iranian retaliatory strikes that American combat aircraft have been forced to operate from bases further away, which made the KC-135 “Stratotankers” so critical. Namely, flying from more distant airbases means the US military must rely more on aerial tankers for refueling. Western fighter jets often require extensive logistical support from such aircraft, as they have significantly inferior range to Russian and Chinese equivalents.

This also forces them to use conformal fuel tanks (CFTs), which extend their range, but reduce payload capacity. The result is a sort of catch-22 situation where American combat aircraft cannot fully use their capabilities (not to mention the added strain of flying at maximum takeoff weight, which reduces the jets’ service life).

In addition, due to massive damage to US bases across the Middle East, particularly radar installations, Washington DC is now forced to use more ISR (intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance) aircraft to provide its forces with critical combat data. This is precisely why the USAF increased the use of E-3 “Sentry” airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft over the Middle East.

Military sources report an unprecedented operational density of these assets over Jordan, northern Saudi Arabia, southern Iraq and the Eastern Mediterranean. The American military relies on E-3 “Sentries” to provide persistent ISR over these areas and beyond, particularly as Iran keeps launching all sorts of drones and various types of missiles (both cruise and ballistic) at targets across the Middle East.

As previously mentioned, the Pentagon is forced to use these aircraft to compensate for the destruction of much (if not most) of its network of highly complex and expensive ground-based radars. Footage shows extensive damage to most American bases in the region and it can be expected that Iran will not allow the US to simply rebuild and then use them in a potential subsequent aggression.

With the E-3 “Sentries” in the air at such a high rate, the aforementioned KC-135 “Stratotankers” will also need to continue supporting this massive effort, as it’s the only way to enable attacks on Iran. The USAF is also increasingly reliant on strategic bombers due to these issues, while reports about American offers for a ceasefire demonstrate that the US has effectively suffered a defeat in the Middle East.

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Source: Weekly Blitz :: Writings