So far 13 US service members have lost their lives to the Iran conflict.
The death toll rose after all six crew members of a refueling aircraft that was shot down flying over friendly airspace on Thursday died.
US Central Command confirmed all six deaths and said there was no hostile or friendly fire that caused the crash.
‘The circumstances of the incident are under investigation,’ CentCom wrote in a statement on what appears to be a deadly accident.
Identities of the recently decease are being withheld until next of kind can be notified of their deaths in the line of service.
The death of the six-member crew adds to the previous death toll of seven.
After Operation Epic Fury began the weekend of February 28, the US announced that six US troops were killed in Iranian drone strikes on a US facility in Kuwait.
A seventh was added to the toll due to injuries the service member sustained from an Iranian attack on a US base in Saudi Arabia.
US Central Command confirmed that all six crew members of a refueling mission died in a mid-air collision. Pictured in a US plane that survived the crash
Donald Trump, First Lady Melania Trump, Vice President JD Vance, Second Lady Usha Vance, White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff and Attorney General Pam Bondi are seen at the dignified transfer ceremony on Saturday, March 7, 2026 at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware
President Donald Trump acknowledged on a call with the Daily Mail earlier this month that more troops would die in the war on Iran.
At the time of the call, the confirmed death toll was at three. Trump called the service members ‘true American patriots who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our nation, even as we continue the righteous mission for which they gave their lives.’
‘They’re great people,’ the president said. ‘And, you know, we expect that to happen, unfortunately. Could happen continuous – it could happen again.’
‘Sadly, there will likely be more, before it ends. That’s the way it is. Likely be more,’ he said of potential casualties.
The death toll is now at 13 after six died in the mid-air crash on Thursday.
Trump flew to Dover Air Force Base in Delaware last week for the dignified transfer of the service members returning back to US soil in caskets.
The six Americans who were killed during the second day of conflict were Army reservists with the 103rd Sustainment Command based out of Des Moines, Iowa.
Nicole Amor, 39, Cody Khork, 35, Declan Coady, 20, Robert Marzan, 54, Jeffrey O’Brien, 45 and Noah Tietjens, 42, died in the war.
The seventh US service member killed in the war was identified as a Sergeant Benjamin N. Pennington, 26, of Glendale, Kentucky. He was assigned to 1st Space Battalion, 1st Space Brigade, in Fort Carson, Colorado.
Details on the recent six deceased is expected to be released in the next 24 hours.