The final casualty toll in western Iraq has been validated. Pentagon and Centcom confirm deaths of KC-135 tanker crew members , bringing the number of soldiers killed to six.
While Iraqi militias claim a shootdown, the U.S. maintains that it was an accident in friendly airspace during ‘Operation Epic Fury’.
Operation Epic Fury: What we know about the KC-135 crash
Four Confirmed Deceased in Loss of U.S. KC-135 Over Iraq
TAMPA, Fla. – At approximately 2 pm ET on March 12, a U.S. KC-135 refueling aircraft went down in western Iraq. Four of six crew members on board the aircraft have been confirmed deceased as rescue efforts continue.
The…
– U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) March 13, 2026
The United States confirmed Friday the death of “all” of the six soldiers on board the KC-135 tanker that crashed Thursday in western Iraq, in the midst of the war against Iran, after initially reporting the death of only four of them.
The U.S. Army Central Command (Centcom), based in Florida, noted that the “circumstances of the incident are under investigation,” but insisted that the “loss of the aircraft did not occur due to enemy or friendly fire.”
“It is now confirmed that all six crew members aboard the U.S. KC-135 who were refueling the aircraft, which went down in western Iraq, are dead.
“The aircraft was lost while flying over friendly airspace on March 12 during Operation Epic Fury,” it said in a statement.
Casualty toll: 14 U.S. soldiers killed in the war
Our nation mourns the loss of six extraordinary American heroes. These brave warriors gave everything in service to our country, supporting Operation Epic Fury.
Major Jeffrey R. O’Brien.
Captain Cody A. Khork.
Chief Warrant Officer 3 Robert M. Marzan.
Sergeant First Class…
– Secretary of War Pete Hegseth (@SecWar) March 6, 2026
With the death of these as yet unidentified servicemen, there are now 14 U.S. soldiers dead since the start of the war against Iran on February 28, of whom seven died directly from Iranian attacks, one more from a “medical emergency” in Kuwait and the rest in this incident in Iraq.
A pro-Iranian militia, the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, had claimed responsibility for shooting down the plane, saying its fighters attacked the aircraft with air defense systems, causing it to crash.
The organization added in subsequent messages that a second U.S. aircraft was attacked in western Iraq, and that the aircraft made an emergency landing at “one of the enemy’s airports,” while its crew made it to safety.
But Centcom does not support this thesis and has not reported any attack on a second aircraft.
Iran has also claimed that a missile from Iraqi armed groups hit the tanker.
According to U.S. accounts, this is the second accident involving U.S. military personnel since the war began, after the aircraft carrier USS Gerald Ford, the largest in its fleet, suffered a fire Thursday that injured two Marines and was also not due to enemy action, according to Centcom.
Filed under: Confirmed death of air tanker crew members
With information from EFE
