US Aircraft Damaged in Iranian Strikes on Jordan Air Base
Iranian strikes overnight damaged US aircraft at Jordan's Muwaffaq Salti Air Base, including an A-10 that lost a wing, as the US and Iran dispute the toll of their escalating exchanges.
Multiple American military aircraft were damaged in Iranian strikes overnight on the Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan, according to accounts citing sources familiar with the matter.
One A-10 Thunderbolt, commonly known as the Warthog, was struck and left with a missing wing. Roughly eight F-15 fighters sustained light damage and were returned to service, the same accounts said. US forces at the Jordanian base were reported to have fired more than 30 Patriot interceptor missiles while defending against the attack.
The reported damage followed a US operation against five Iranian tankers, described as retaliation for Iran targeting a US Navy warship. In response, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it launched attacks on eight tankers and two warships, including the base in Jordan.
US Central Command said on Wednesday that no US Navy warship was hit and that all attempted IRGC attacks failed. It added that US forces had destroyed 10 Iranian tankers over the past week, describing the vessels as part of a multibillion-dollar shadow network funding the IRGC, and said Iran cannot defend them.
Escalation since late August
The exchange marks the latest chapter in a conflict that intensified in late August, when the US struck two Iranian launchers on Larak Island in the Strait of Hormuz — its first known military action since late July. Washington said Iran was attempting to lay sea mines in the strait, a waterway that has become the focus of regional tensions and diplomatic efforts.
"US forces took limited, precise action against IRGC minelaying forces posing an imminent threat in the Strait of Hormuz," CENTCOM said a day later.
Iran, in a statement carried by its state broadcaster, said several Revolutionary Guards members and Iranian civilians were killed and injured in the Larak Island strike. Tehran retaliated with ballistic missiles at two US bases in Jordan. The IRGC named the combined missile and drone operation "Punishment of the Aggressor" and said it hit the King Hussein and Al Azraq bases.
On September 8, Iran's Revolutionary Guards said they had seized an American submarine drone in the Strait of Hormuz, which Tehran has blockaded during the months-long war. The same day, US Central Command released video of what it described as a strike on an Iranian tanker in the Gulf of Oman.
A day later, Iran launched fresh attacks on US targets in the Middle East in retaliation for American strikes on Iranian oil tankers, pulling the two sides deeper into the conflict.
Six months into the war, the US and Iran remain locked in a stalemate, with Iran holding the Strait of Hormuz — which normally carries about a fifth of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas exports — and Washington pursuing a campaign to choke Iran's ports and economy.
War could extend to 2029
Top White House advisers have privately raised with President Donald Trump the possibility that the war with Iran could continue through the end of his term, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday, citing US officials.
Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and others have discussed with Trump the prospect that Tehran could keep resisting US pressure under the blockade and other military measures, potentially extending the conflict beyond Inauguration Day in January 2029.
The private discussions contrast with Trump's public comments on Wednesday that the war would end "immediately" after the November midterm elections because Iran "can't hold out any longer."
The Journal reported that a prolonged conflict would strain US military resources and risk extended disruption to global oil markets. It also reported that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has already extended some Middle East deployments into 2027, while the Pentagon plans to keep some air-defense units in the region without a firm end date.
Trump has also backed a longer-term economic pressure campaign built around a naval blockade and sanctions aimed at forcing Tehran to dismantle its nuclear program, the report said.