U.S. Central Command said the circumstances were being investigated and that the loss of the aircraft was not due to hostile or friendly fire.
All six crew members aboard a U.S. military refuelling aircraft have been confirmed dead after it crashed in western Iraq, military officials said.
In a post on X, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said the KC-135 Stratotanker refueling plane, which had a crew of six, went down at about 2 p.m. ET on March 12 while flying over friendly airspace during Operation Epic Fury.
All Crew Members of U.S. KC-135 Loss in Iraq Confirmed Deceased
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) March 13, 2026
TAMPA, Fla. – All six crew members aboard a U.S. KC-135 refueling aircraft that went down in western Iraq are now confirmed deceased. The aircraft was lost while flying over friendly airspace March 12 during…
“The circumstances of the incident are under investigation. However, the loss of the aircraft was not due to hostile fire or friendly fire,” CENTCOM said.
Earlier reports had confirmed four fatalities, but officials later said all six crew members were deceased.
The identities of the deceased service members are being withheld until next of kin have been notified, CENTCOM added.
On March 12, the Iranian-backed Islamic Resistance in Iraq claimed responsibility for the downing of the KC-135, saying it was to defend the country’s “sovereignty and airspace.” They provided no evidence to support their claim.
The exact location of the crash site has not been disclosed, but much of western Iraq is made up of desert, with the occasional wadi and small town.
The KC-135 is the fourth U.S. plane to come down during Operation Epic Fury.
Three F-15E Strike Eagles were shot down in a friendly fire incident over Kuwait on March 1.
The KC-135 Stratotanker is a plane used to refuel other aircraft in midair, allowing them to remain operational longer.
The regular crew of the KC-135 is three, with a pilot, co-pilot, and boom operator, and it is not known what the roles were of the additional crew of the crashed plane.
Based on the basic design of the Boeing 707 passenger plane, the KC-135 has been in service for more than 60 years, supporting the U.S. Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps.
It is due to be phased out and replaced by KC-46A Pegasus tankers.
The U.S. Air Force has 376 KC-135s, of which 151 are on active duty, the Air National Guard has 163, and the Air Force Reserve has 62, according to a report from the Congressional Research Service.
Yang Uk, a security expert at South Korea’s Asan Institute for Policy Studies, said it would be rare for a refueling tanker to be downed by enemy fire because they usually operate away from combat zones.
KC-135s have previously been involved in several fatal accidents.
On May 3, 2013, a KC-135R crashed after takeoff in Kyrgyzstan, while supporting U.S. forces fighting in Afghanistan.
A U.S. Air Force investigation later found that the crew had experienced problems with the plane’s rudder.
As the crew struggled with the rudder, the tail section broke off, and the plane exploded midair, killing all three crewmembers, the probe found.
