On February 28, Israel and the United States launched Operation Epic Fury, a large-scale strike on Iranian territory, starting with the deployment of large numbers of Tomahawk cruise missiles from US Navy warships.
The US Air Force assets in the theatre included F-22A Raptors forward-deployed to Ovda Airbase in Israel, along with F-35As, F-15E Strike Eagles, A-10Cs, and F-16Cs, supported by a fleet of tankers as well as RC-135s, E-3s, and E-11As operating from Jordan and Israel. The USA has also deployed a US Navy E-6B Mercury airborne command post to the Middle East.
More than 200 aircraft of the Israel Air Force, including F-35I Adirs, F-15I Ra’ams, and F-16I Sufas, have been participating in Israel’s Operation Roaring Lion.
Initial strikes by US and Israeli aircraft targeted sites associated with Iran’s high-ranking political and military leaders, as well as intelligence facilities, units of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), and other security structures. By 1 March, it was confirmed that Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, had been killed.
However, because of the last-minute decision to attack Iran prompted by Israel, the United States failed to inform its Gulf allies that its aircraft would be crossing their airspace. This led to a ‘friendly fire’ incident on 1 March when three USAF F-15E Strike Eagles were shot down over Bahrain on 3 March by an F/A-18C Hornet of the Kuwaiti Air Force. Two belonged to the 492FF based at RAF Lakenheath, and one belonged to the 335FF at Seymour Johnson. All six crew members ejected and were unharmed.
Another F-15E Strike Eagle was shot down on 4 March over southwest Iran. The crew ejected and were rescued in Jordan with minor injuries.
On 2 March, Israel opened a second front by striking Hezbollah targets in Lebanon after the Iranian-backed Shia group launched rockets and drones at the Israeli city of Haifa to avenge the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
USAF B-2 Spirit bombers, flying from Whiteman Air Force Base and armed with 2,000 lb bombs, targeted Iran’s hardened ballistic missile facilities on 2 March. However, by 4 March, the USAF was using fewer standoff weapons and more conventional munitions such as 500 lb, 1,000 lb, and 2,000 lb guided bombs. This shift may aim to ease the strain on the limited supply of some US high-end missile stock, although CENTCOM insisted it has sufficient precision munitions for the task at hand. By the end of the first week, the US had dropped more than 2,000 munitions, and Israel approximately 5,000.
After initially refusing the United States’ request to use its bases for offensive operations, the British prime minister Sir Keir Starmer has now authorised the use of RAF Fairford and Diego Garcia for USAF aircraft. Since the start of Operation Epic Fury, the USAF U-2S Dragon Lady has been operating from RAF Akrotiri.
The only UK response to the strikes on Iran was to deploy eight RAF Typhoons, Voyager tankers, and six 617 Squadron F-35Bs to RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus, which was hit by an Iranian drone launched from Beirut. On 3 March, the F-35Bs shot down Iranian drones over Jordan. Four RAF 11 Squadron Typhoons were also sent to Qatar to operate with the joint UK-Qatar 12 Squadron.
Iran’s air force was severely depleted during the 12-day war in June 2025, and in the first week of the US/Israeli attacks, more than 20 of its aircraft were destroyed, mainly on the ground. These include an F-4D Phantom II and an F-5F Tiger II at Tabriz International Airport on 1 March, two IRRG Su-22M4s at Shiraz International Airport, and two Su-24MKs that were shot down in Qatar while flying at low level over Qatar on 2 March. Additionally, two IRGC Su-22s were at Shiraz International Airport, and on 4 March, one of the Iranian Air Force’s six Yak-130 Mitten advanced trainers was shot down by an Israeli Air Force F-35I Adir in Kavasan, Tehran Province.
On a 6 March strike at Shahid Dastgheib International Airport, two more Su-22M4s, an Il-76, and two C-130E Hercules aircraft were destroyed.
The following night, the IDF claimed to have destroyed 16 IRGC Quds Force transport aircraft, including Harbin Y-12s and F-27 Friendships at Mehrabad Airport.
The USA has announced that it is preparing to carry out military operations against Iran for at least 100 days, potentially until September. Simultaneously, the US plans to allocate an additional US$50 billion to replenish the stockpile of weapons used against Iran.
by David Oliver
