Wreckage from downed US aircraft in central Iran on March 5, 2026
Joseph Luke Palmer – Daily Mail April 16, 2026
In the latest episode of the Daily Mail’s Photo Evidence, reporter Catherine Barnwell scrutinises new satellite images that reveal how America’s Department of War may not be telling the full truth about the scale of its losses during the Iran war.
Since the launch of Operation Epic Fury on February 28, the joint US-Israeli bombing campaign against Iran, the regime has retaliated by targeting American military assets across the Gulf with waves of missile and drone strikes.
As Barnwell explains, Iran’s war strategy has been anything but conventional. Rather than targeting fighter jets or bombers, the IRGC has systematically attempted to blind and cripple America’s command and control layer, launching attacks against radar and air defence systems.
It is these costly losses in strategic equipment, Barnwell argues, that the Department of War is not being fully transparent about. Her claim is borne out by looking at the latest EU Sentinel satellite images and cross referencing these with open source flight tracking data, ground photography and pictures issued by Iran’s state media.
This is significant. The loss of just one AWACS surveillance plane alone costs the American taxpayer $724 million.
The Department of War asked Planet Labs, the world’s largest commercial satellite imagery provider, to withhold all images of the conflict region, including the bases of ally nations, indefinitely. The company complied.
Barnwell contends that the Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia provides an example of this alleged lack of transparency.
While the Department of War confirmed ten US service members were injured in a strike on the base, a spokesperson declined to comment over whether any strategic assets had been destroyed.
She explained: ‘The Prince Sultan is one of the main bases in the Middle East from which America is fighting its war with Iran.
‘The base is not home to combat aircraft. It is where the US keeps its logistics and support planes.
‘On March 27th, we know Iran managed to effectively destroy an AWACS aircraft during an attack on the base. Looking at before and after satellite images, you can see the black roto dome of the aircraft is completely gone and there’s a black scorch mark on the tarmac.
‘These images were published by Iran’s state media, so need to be treated with scepticism… however, ground photography from the day of the strike shows the tail number of the aircraft, 81-0005.
The wreckage of a U.S. E-3 after being hit on the ground by Iranian drones. Click to enlarge
‘This matches an aircraft that was operating as part of the 552nd air control wing out of Tinker Air Force Base in Oklahoma. Flight tracking data traced it to Ramstein Air Base in Germany on February 19th, before it flew on to Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia.’
Beyond the very probable loss of the AWACS, Barnwell shows how as many as seven KC-135 refuelling tankers may have been destroyed or damaged in the March 27 strike.
Images of the air base’s main apron, released by Iran’s state media, who claim three KC-135 tankers were destroyed and four more damaged in the strike, tally with independent EU satellite imagery.
Replacing just one KC-135 with its modern equivalent could cost the American taxpayer as much as $240 million.
‘In the EU image, you can clearly see a scorch mark on the ground which tallies with where the tankers were in the Iranian image’, Barnwell said.
‘However, in the European images, there does not seem to be any damage below the scorch mark where other tankers were parked. So, Iran’s claim of destroying three is unlikely to be true.’
Looking at one air base on just one day of the Iran war, it appears probable that the US lost over a billion dollars worth of equipment. The UK’s entire defence budget for 2026 was £62.2 billion.
A US MQ-9 Reaper drone shot down over Iran. Click to enlarge
‘America is not being entirely honest with the damage being caused by the war’, Barnwell said.
‘It has stopped US satellite companies from publishing imagery which shows us the damage that other sources and photographers on the ground are revealing.
‘Officials have given off the record briefings confirming that Prince Sultan Air Base was hit on March 27, but have said nothing about the destruction of the aircraft.’
sonia poulton exposes esther rantzen
https://duckduckgo.com/?q=youtube+sonia+poulton+17+april+2026&ia=videos&iax=videos&iai=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtub
Maybe Russia asked Iran to agree to a brief ceasefire, allowing the US to bring in more weapons to be further demilitarized?
LOL..
‘Looking at one air base on just one day of the Iran war, it appears probable that the US lost over a billion dollars worth of equipment. The UK’s entire defence budget for 2026 was £62.2 billion.’
Covid cost the american taxpayers 16 trillion… so you are talking firework money..
try this for scale..because most numbskulls have no idea when it comes
to figures.. so buckle up for some astounding factoids…
‘ Here’s a mind-bending way to think about it: if you owned a trillion dollars and spent $1,000,000 each day, it would take you just under 2,740 years to spend it all.’
A trillion is a million million for both American and modern British English definitions. A trillion dollars is a million dollars multiplied by a million. Or if you prefer, a thousand billion. It has 12 zeroes: 1,000,000,000,000.
When we look at millions, billions and trillions in time scales, the size of a trillion really becomes apparent. It would take us over 350 lifetimes, at an average of 90 years each, to live a trillion seconds.
A million seconds is 12 days.
A billion seconds is 31 years.
A trillion seconds is 31,688 years.!!!!!!
If $1 million in $100 dollar bills stacks up to 40 inches (3.3 feet:), and $1 billion is 40,000 inches (that’s 0.63 miles high), $1 trillion in $100 dollar bills is 40,000,000 inches high, which is 631 miles.
so there you have it..that’s how they take the piss out of you… it’s quite easy.
When it comes to the now closed again Hormuz Strait, it’s Iran telling the U.S. what it’s doing.
We’ll have to see if the U.S. accepts what Iran plans to do in the Persian Gulf.
The bottom line is that the people everywhere are allowed to know dick about any of the actual causalities and damage one way or the other. Again we have to trust all of spurious official sources constantly such that we are kept as prisoners their dark world of fear, uncertainty, and insecurity, no matter what field or institution not controlled and managed directly by ourselves. We are fully into the Great Reset NWO feudalistic system, no better than surfs or prisoners in our own nations who can be uprooted and exterminated if deemed unwanted or “nonessential” by those on high. The ideals and hopes of societies based being built on truth, freedom, justice as a basis for trust and cooperation have never been resurrected since 2020, and never will be until we unify and take back the control of them.
“The loss of just one AWACS surveillance plane alone costs the American taxpayer $724 million” .. “one KC-135 with its modern equivalent could cost the American taxpayer as much as $240 million” … It is criminally insane what “defense” contractors are able to pocket selling shit to the Americunt regime they manufacture for one fiftieth of the price, if not less. We’ve heard of the $800 hammers and $500 toilet seats, but what the Americunt imbecile is getting gouged for, at jew compound interest of course, for those machines of murder and mayhem is beyond stunningly avaricious.
As for the average Americunt dumb-f*ck, at least half of the imbeciles I hear out there are for bombing Iran, with many of them saying Iran should be “nuked”. They’re the ones who obviously wouldn’t know shit from shampoo and can’t see past their own abject stupidity as Shlomo and the Tribe from Way Down Under pimp-slaps them with a giant rubber dong and stuffs shit in their ears and eyes while stealing everything in sight.
USA is insane and NuttyYappyJews bitch.
Hasn’t the USA figured it out that it has LOST and LOST badly.?
They are using tactics and weaponry obsolete for decades when compared to IRAN.
Insanity is repetition of predictable failure ?
Iran will have Drones worth a few thousand $$$ dollars take out USA military equipment worth $500 + Million. WTF?
Latest update was USA tried to sneak into the Strait of Hormuz while peace talks were underway……USA was detected by Iran… and USA was warned to retreat ASAP as missiles were locked onto each US ship in the convoy.
They retreated.
My guess is IRAN told USA never again and park your shitty ships far away.
What part of “Your (USA) ass is mine”… and ” Your (USA) ass will be handed to you on a platter.”
Again USA got off lucky..but luck will soon run out?
Finally big tough USA needed several allies to take on Germany in WW2 aka the USA stuck its nose into Brits ( Balfour Declaration ) WW1 screw up…and again in WW2..each time it came in late and dragged out Wars that should have ended sooner.
Then USA stuck its nose in Korea War..Vietnam..Afghanistan .etc etc. and had its ass kicked out every time.
It never learns.
Iran is much like Germany …if USA was THE only adversary that Germany had in WW2,??? Germany would have kicked the USA Bullies ass to the curb in a heartbeat.
Stand alone USA = weak and pathetic.
Iran is the quasi- reincarnation of Germany ..
Let long overdue “Karma” – esque Justice commence and prevail.
Seriously. ‘Operation epic fury’? Who is the pantomime idiot that comes up with this nonsense?
“Barnwell argues, that the Department of War is not being fully transparent about” – Would or has Trump ever spoken the truth? When a self proclaimed (P)resident of truth cheats at golf would he be fully transparent about? Fact is: Trump lies and women like Barnwell argue. About what?
Chesterton as usual has it worked out and anyone who dares can argue about trillions and ze eckonommie and can get exactly to where Barnwell ended up: nowhere!
ISRAEL BOMBS FRENCH PEACE KEEPERS
Macron says 1 French soldier was killed and 3 injured in attack on peacekeepers in Lebanon
Story by Via AP news wire
Israel bombs Lebanon Gaza and Iran again
French President Emmanuel Macron said a French soldier was killed and three others injured
on Saturday morning during an attack on U.N. peacekeepers in southern Lebanon.
Macron identified the soldier as Staff Sergeant Florian Montorio of the 17th Parachute Engineer Regiment from Montauban.