The 2026 Iran War has produced a remarkable catalogue of aviation losses and engagements, from the first ever stealth fighter dogfight to a devastating friendly fire incident that destroyed three American strike aircraft. The conflict has provided rare real world data on modern air combat and the vulnerabilities of unmanned platforms.
The most historically significant engagement occurred on 4 March when an Israeli F 35I Adir intercepted and shot down an Iranian Yak 130 Mitten trainer turned light combat aircraft over Tehran. The Israel Defence Forces published footage of the engagement, which took place near Latyan Dam in Tehran province. This marked the first time in history that a fifth generation stealth fighter had shot down a manned aircraft in combat, and the first Israeli air to air kill since 1985.
The United States has suffered notable losses across multiple aircraft types. The most significant was the friendly fire incident on 2 March when three USAF F 15E Strike Eagles were shot down over Kuwait by what is believed to have been a Kuwaiti Air Force F/A 18C Hornet misidentifying the American aircraft. All six crew members ejected safely into Kuwaiti territory. One aircraft crashed near Al Jahra in central Kuwait, while the other two went down near Kuwait City. The incident prompted immediate reviews of coalition identification friend or foe procedures.
The MQ 9A Reaper drone fleet has taken particularly heavy losses. By mid March, at least 11 Reapers had been confirmed shot down by Iranian forces, with losses documented across multiple provinces including Isfahan, Hormozgan, Bushehr and Bandar Abbas. On 5 March alone, US officials confirmed three Reapers had been lost over Iran. The shootdowns have raised questions about the survivability of medium altitude unmanned aircraft in contested airspace defended by modern air defence systems.
Israeli unmanned aerial vehicles have also been targeted effectively. Multiple Hermes 900 and Heron 1 drones were intercepted by Iranian forces using Ghaem 118 air defence missiles. One captured Hermes 900, serial number 923, was reportedly armed with missiles and suffered minimal damage, allowing Iranian engineers to examine the platform in detail.
Iran’s own air force losses have been extensive. On the opening day, an F 5E Tiger II and F 4E Phantom II were destroyed in an Israeli strike at Tabriz Shahid Madani International Airport. CENTCOM subsequently released footage showing the destruction of Su 22M4 aircraft at Shiraz and additional fighters at Ahvaz. The 7 March attack on Mehrabad International Airport destroyed 17 aircraft, including cargo planes, Boeing 747 200Ms and Ilyushin Il 76MDs.
An Italian Air Force MQ 9A Predator B was also destroyed in an Iranian strike on Ali Al Salem Air Base in Kuwait on 15 March, highlighting the vulnerability of coalition assets at forward operating bases.
The coalition has also suffered losses at sea, with a US submarine sinking the Iranian warship IRIS Dena off Sri Lanka, killing 87 crew members.
These engagements collectively demonstrate that modern air warfare remains a high stakes domain where even technologically advanced forces face significant risks.
