Iranian Strike Destroys $270M US Airborne Warning Plane at Saudi Base, First Combat Loss
Iran claims to have destroyed its first combat loss by striking and demolishing a U.S. E-3G Sentry AWACS aircraft with missiles targeting the Prince Sultan air base on March 29th; fresh images circulating online confirm that this $270 million American spy plane was hit during an attack, marking it as the destruction of America's most critical airborne asset in history according to multiple news outlets including Livemint and Nypost.
Key Points
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1Iran claims to have destroyed a U.S. E-3 Sentry AWACS aircraft with missile and drone strikes on Saudi Arabian air bases.
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2Photos show the jet severely damaged, including severed tail sections that render it unflyable at Prince Sultan Air Base in Al Kharj or similar locations within Saudi Arabia.
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3Analysts warn this destruction could hamper U.S. ability to spot incoming Iranian threats and marks a significant loss of key airborne assets.
Developments
Verified photos show a US E-3 Sentry command-and-control jet split in two after being struck by what Iran claims was its Shahed drone at the Prince Sultan Air Base near Riyadh, while 12 personnel were wounded. A separate fire on base apron is visible but has not been confirmed as part of this specific attack or related to other damaged refueling aircraft reported separately.