Operation Epic Fury — Iran, 2026
Real-time estimate of what this conflict costs American taxpayers, updated every second.
Homelessness, student debt, crumbling schools, uninsured families — this money could have solved them. Instead, it's smoke and shrapnel.
Each missile fired is a school not built, a person not insured, a family not housed. These are the choices being made in your name.
This war already exceeds the annual budgets of entire federal agencies. Watch it surpass program after program in real time.
From the first deployment order to right now, the cost curve only goes in one direction — up. Every second adds thousands more.
$630 million spent just getting into position. Carrier groups, aircraft deployments, and munitions pre-positioned across the Gulf — before the war even started.
$630M total. Sources: Elaine McCusker (AEI) via WSJ, JFeed, WaPo, TRANSCOM rates
| Component | Low | Mid | High |
|---|---|---|---|
Lincoln CSG transit (Philippines → Arabian Sea) | $56.0M | $65.0M | $72.0M |
Ford CSG transit (Caribbean → Middle East) | $80.0M | $97.0M | $112.0M |
Fighter/support aircraft deployment (150+ aircraft) | $120.0M | $160.0M | $200.0M |
Munitions & supplies pre-positioning (170+ cargo flights) | $80.0M | $115.0M | $150.0M |
THAAD/Patriot battery deployments | $40.0M | $60.0M | $80.0M |
B-2 bomber mission preparation | $15.0M | $20.0M | $30.0M |
| Total | $391.0M | $517.0M | $644.0M |
Over $200 million a day — that's about $2,350 per second, around the clock. Personnel, fuel, aircraft, naval operations, and intelligence all running 24/7.
| Component | Low | Mid | High |
|---|---|---|---|
Personnel (~50,000 deployed) | $25.0M | $40.0M | $60.0M |
Naval forces (1 CSG active: Lincoln; Bush in transit; Ford returning home; 7 DDGs, 6 LCS) | $22.5M | $29.0M | $36.7M |
Aircraft operations (13 types) | $30.0M | $48.0M | $70.0M |
Fuel & logistics | $10.0M | $20.0M | $30.0M |
Non-tracked ordnance (JDAMs, SDBs, small arms) | $15.0M | $35.0M | $55.0M |
C4ISR / cyber / space | $6.0M | $10.0M | $15.0M |
Overhead & unmodeled costs | $20.0M | $45.0M | $55.0M |
| Total | $128.5M | $227.0M | $321.7M |
Every strike, every barrage, every loss — documented with timestamps, costs, and sources. The full chronology of escalation.
Iran struck at least 7 U.S. military sites across the Gulf. A $500M radar — irreplaceable in the short term — destroyed in a single barrage.
Iran struck at least 7 US military sites across the Gulf region. Sources: TRT World OSINT, CENTCOM, SOF News
| Location | Damage | Low | Mid | High |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UAE — Al-Ruwais Industrial City | THAAD AN/TPY-2 radar destroyed | $400.0M | $500.0M | $600.0M |
| Kuwait — Camp Arifjan, Ali Al Salem, Camp Buehring | 3 radomes destroyed at Arifjan, 8 buildings at Ali Al Salem (struck twice), 6 KIA; CH-47F Chinook destroyed at Buehring by Shahed-136 (~Apr 3); 15 US wounded at Ali Al Salem drone strike (Apr 6) | $88.0M | $144.0M | $250.0M |
| Bahrain — Fifth Fleet HQ | 2 AN/GSC-52B SATCOM terminals + warehouse complex destroyed by fire (satellite imagery Mar 29) | $100.0M | $150.0M | $200.0M |
| Qatar — Al-Udeid Air Base | AN/FPS-132 Block 5 early-warning radar destroyed by Iranian ballistic missile | $900.0M | $1.100B | $1.300B |
| Iraq (Erbil), UAE (Jebel Ali) | Multiple facilities struck, assessments ongoing | $50.0M | $100.0M | $200.0M |
| Saudi Arabia — Prince Sultan Air Base | AN/TPY-2 THAAD radar destroyed by Iranian ballistic missile (confirmed by satellite imagery) | $400.0M | $500.0M | $600.0M |
| Jordan — Muwaffaq Salti Air Base | AN/TPY-2 THAAD radar destroyed by Iranian precision strike | $400.0M | $500.0M | $600.0M |
| UAE — Sader Military Installation | THAAD battery site — 4 buildings damaged incl. radar vehicle sheds | $400.0M | $500.0M | $600.0M |
| UAE — Al Dhafra Air Base (Mar 1 strike) | Satellite antennas and structures damaged by Iranian BMs; THAAD intercepted some incoming threats | $10.0M | $25.0M | $50.0M |
| UAE — Al Dhafra Air Base (Mar 15 strike) | Second strike — hangars shredded by fire per satellite imagery; workshops housing UAE Saab GlobalEye aircraft (~$1B each) damaged — contents unconfirmed | $15.0M | $30.0M | $60.0M |
| Saudi Arabia — Prince Sultan Air Base (KC-135 damage) | 5 KC-135 Stratotankers damaged on ground by Iranian missile strike — all repairable, not written off | $5.0M | $15.0M | $25.0M |
| Saudi Arabia — Prince Sultan Air Base (KC-135s + E-3 destroyed) | 3 KC-135 Stratotankers destroyed + 1 E-3G AWACS destroyed by Iranian barrage (6 BMs + 29 drones), 15 US troops wounded | $400.0M | $480.0M | $620.0M |
| Saudi Arabia — Prince Sultan Air Base (second E-3 damaged) | Second E-3G Sentry AWACS sustained heavy damage in Mar 27 Iranian barrage — not confirmed write-off, under assessment | $20.0M | $80.0M | $270.0M |
| Total base/equipment damage | $3.188B | $4.124B | $5.375B | |
A $4M Patriot interceptor to shoot down a $20,000 drone. A 200:1 cost ratio that is economically unsustainable — and production can't keep pace.
Iran launched 771+ ballistic missiles and 906+ drones at US bases across the Gulf. Sources: Bloomberg, American Prospect, CSIS, Defence Express, Asia Times
| Interceptor Type | Unit Cost | Qty Fired | Total Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
THAAD interceptor | $15,000,000 | 300 | $4.500B |
Patriot PAC-3 MSE | $4,000,000 | 550 | $2.200B |
SM-6 (Standard Missile 6) | $5,300,000 | 200 | $1.060B |
SM-3 Block IB | $12,000,000 | 33 | $396.0M |
SM-3 Block IIA (Diego Garcia IRBM intercept, Mar 21) | $28,000,000 | 1 | $28.0M |
| Total | 1084 | $8.850B |
Tomahawks, JDAMs, JASSMs — precision weapons that take years to manufacture, expended in hours. Each one costs more than most Americans earn in a year.
| Item | Unit Cost | Repl. Cost | Qty | Line Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Tomahawk Block V | $3.5M | $3.5M | 1,000 | $3.500B |
JASSM-ER (Bloomberg Apr 4: bulk of global stockpile deployed; pre-war ~2,300, ~425 remain) | $1.5M | $1.7M | 1,875 | $2.813B |
GBU-57 MOP | $3.5M | $4.0M | 8 | $28.0M |
GBU-31 JDAM | $25K | $30K | 3,000 | $75.0M |
PrSM (HIMARS) | $2.5M | $3.0M | 20 | $50.0M |
AGM-88 HARM | $870K | $950K | 45 | $39.1M |
AIM-120 AMRAAM | $1.1M | $1.2M | 30 | $33.0M |
LUCAS one-way attack drone | $35K | $35K | 200 | $7.0M |
F-15EX airframes lost (friendly fire) | $103.0M | $103.0M | 3 | $309.0M |
Harpoon / NSM (anti-ship) | $1.8M | $2.0M | 40 | $72.0M |
Mk-48 ADCAP Mod 7 torpedo | $4.2M | $4.2M | 1 | $4.2M |
MQ-9 Reaper UAV lost (24 total: 3 early losses, 2 shot down Mar 7, 6 additional through Mar 9, 1 Bandar Abbas Mar 13, 1 Bushehr Mar 22, 1 Shiraz Mar 27, 1 Strait of Hormuz Mar 29, 1 Isfahan Apr 1, 1 post-Apr 3, +7 additional Apr 1–9 per CBS/Jim LaPorta Apr 9) | $30.0M | $30.0M | 24 | $720.0M |
KC-135 Stratotanker lost (mid-air collision, Iraq, Mar 12 — 2 aircraft: 1 destroyed, 1 substantial damage) | $70.0M | $240.0M | 2 | $140.0M |
F-35A Lightning II damaged (Iranian ground fire, Mar 19 — emergency landing, likely write-off) | $82.0M | $82.0M | 1 | $82.0M |
KC-135 Stratotanker destroyed (PSAB Iranian strike, Mar 27 — 3 destroyed on flight line per satellite imagery) | $70.0M | $240.0M | 3 | $210.0M |
E-3G Sentry AWACS destroyed (PSAB Iranian strike, Mar 27 — rear fuselage + rotodome burned out, confirmed by War Zone/DSA imagery) | $270.0M | $270.0M | 1 | $270.0M |
F-15E Strike Eagle shot down over Iran (494th FS, Apr 3 — pilot rescued Apr 3, WSO rescued Apr 5) | $87.0M | $87.0M | 1 | $87.0M |
A-10C Thunderbolt II lost (Persian Gulf, Apr 3 — crashed during CSAR mission for F-15E crew, pilot rescued) | $18.8M | $18.8M | 1 | $18.8M |
MC-130J Commando II destroyed (CSAR mission, Iran, Apr 4-5 — 2 deliberately destroyed to prevent capture at forward airstrip near Isfahan) | $114.0M | $114.0M | 2 | $228.0M |
MH-6 Little Bird helicopters destroyed (CSAR mission, Iran, Apr 4-5 — Night Stalkers, 4 destroyed at forward landing site; revised from 2 per The War Zone + aviation-safety.net incident record Apr 11) | $10.0M | $10.0M | 4 | $40.0M |
KC-46 Pegasus aerial refueling tanker destroyed (Prince Sultan AB, Mar 27 — confirmed by Southfront satellite imagery Apr 8; in same Iranian barrage as 3 KC-135s + 1 E-3G AWACS; not captured in original Mar 27 event) | $200.0M | $200.0M | 1 | $200.0M |
CH-47F Chinook destroyed (Camp Buehring, Kuwait, ~Apr 3 — Shahed-136 drone strike, cockpit/rotor destroyed, write-off) | $44.0M | $44.0M | 1 | $44.0M |
| Total | 6,263 | $8.970B |
Carrier strike groups, fighter squadrons, tankers, bombers — the most expensive military machinery ever built, burning fuel and flight hours around the clock.
Behind every number is a person. Service members, civilians, families — the cost that no dollar figure can capture.
Oil price shocks, shipping disruptions, diplomatic fallout, regional destabilization — costs that extend far beyond the battlefield.
Every figure is sourced, cross-referenced, and documented. 30+ sources from DoD, CRS, GAO, and independent researchers. Full transparency — no black boxes.