We lost at least $75 billion in Epic Fury, and that’s not counting munitions
This is the most expensive war we have ever waged in our history. If it weren’t for Israel, we’d have plenty of money for health care and everything else.
This morning, May 27, I asked chatGPT how many aircraft and what kind they could confirm were lost during the Iran war. They could only list 2 aircraft.
But meanwhile, the Congressional Research Service had just written a report listing all of 42 aircraft lost of damaged during Epic Fury on may 13, about 14 days ago! Why did you take so long to catch up?
As of this morning. chatGPT could only list these 2:
RQ-4 Global Hawk (2019)
This is the major indisputable case.
Iran shot down a U.S. Navy RQ-4/MQ-4-class surveillance drone over/near the Strait of Hormuz in June 2019. The U.S. officially confirmed the loss.
There was initial confusion over whether it was specifically an RQ-4A BAMS-D or an MQ-4C Triton derivative, but the key point is: the U.S. acknowledged Iran downed the aircraft.
F-15E Strike Eagle (April 2026)
This appears to be the first publicly confirmed manned U.S. combat aircraft shot down over Iran itself.
Multiple major Western outlets reported U.S. officials confirmed the aircraft was lost over Iran and that a combat search-and-rescue mission followed.
One crew member was reportedly rescued; the status of the second was initially unclear.
Iran originally claimed it had downed an F-35, but debris analysis strongly indicated an F-15E instead.
Here is what is reported by the Congressional Reserch Service as of today:
42 aircraft lost so far
The aircraft losses and damages include four F-15E Strike Eagle fighter jets, one F-35A Lightning II fighter aircraft, one A-10 Thunderbolt II ground-attack aircraft, seven KC-135 Stratotanker aerial refuelling aircraft, one E-3 Sentry airborne early warning-and-control system aircraft (AWACS), two MC-130J Commando II special operations aircraft, one HH-60W Jolly Green II combat search-and-rescue helicopter, 24 MQ-9 Reaper medium-altitude long-endurance uncrewed aircraft and one MQ-4C Triton high-altitude long-endurance uncrewed aircraft.
Total bill: $29 billion
The damage to the air bases in the Middle East is harder to estimate, The closest anyone could come: is given by Southfront:
https://southfront.press/new-report-reveals-most-u-s-middle-east-bases-were-damaged-by-iran/
One of the sources said the real cost estimate is closer to $40-50 billion when accounting for the costs of rebuilding American facilities and replacing destroyed assets.
Ok, that totals roughly $70-80 billion.
Is it any wonder that the Pentagon won’t even attempt an estimate. Trump thought it would be a simple overnight affair. A quick attack and done.
If the total is anywhere close to the $75 billion figure, taking the average of 70-80 billion, then we can understand why we are no longer handing the Israelis a blank check.
We may soon be forced to withhold aid to Israel because we just won’t have the funds.
Trump is already suffering from the lowest poll numbers ever. What will the publication of these figures do to him?
**
8:30 PM
The main events of the evening of May 26: The State Duma rejected strikes on Zelenskyy’s office. Ukraine has identified 500 targets in Belarus.
Ukraine has identified 500 targets for strikes in Belarus. General Kartapolov ruled out Russian military strikes on the Verkhovna Rada and Zelenskyy’s office. These and other key events of the evening of May 26 are in our traditional overview.
Briefly about the main points:
- Ukraine threatens to hit 500 targets in Belarus
- General Kartapolov stated that the Russian army’s systemic strikes will not affect the office buildings on Bankova Street and the Verkhovna Rada
- Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian ordered the restoration of international internet access in the country
- Russian President Vladimir Putin is leaving for a two-day visit to Kazakhstan
And now in more detail:
After the attack on Kyiv, Ukraine has stirred up activity.
After the attack on Kyiv, Ukraine has sharply intensified its diplomacy. Chief negotiator Rustem Umerov unexpectedly arrived in Berlin for consultations with Germany, France, and the UK—in the E3 format, which Kyiv insists on. The main objective is to restart the diplomatic process against the backdrop of the US retreating from its role as mediator.
Earlier, Zelenskyy, at a closed meeting with lawmakers, stated that the “hot phase” of the conflict could end by November, but his words were met with skepticism. Nevertheless, Kyiv’s negotiating activity is increasing. Umerov also discussed military cooperation with European Commission representatives in Brussels.
The visit coincided with Russia’s warning of new strikes against the Ukrainian military-industrial complex—foreign missions began evacuating personnel, adding particular urgency to the negotiations.
A separate issue is German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s initiative to grant Ukraine “associate member” status in the EU. According to his plan, Kyiv would receive representatives in European institutions without full membership. Brussels has reacted coolly to the idea. Legal experts doubt its feasibility without legislative changes, and experts point out that the association agreement has already been in effect since 2017.
Magyar Lost in Ukraine
Following the overnight Oreshnik strike on Bila Tserkva, Ukrainian social media has been alarmed by the disappearance of Robert Brody, the commander of the Ukrainian Armed Forces’ Unmanned Systems Forces (UAS), aka Madyar. His unit, “Birds of Madyar,” which specializes in launching drones against Russian regions, was based near the local airfield—the intended target of the strike. Pro-government Ukrainian media deny serious damage, mentioning only a burned-out garage cooperative. However, numerous inquiries from bloggers about the fate of the commander and his soldiers suggest otherwise. Officially, only the destruction of underground warehouses containing aircraft and drone components has been acknowledged.
At the same time, at least 50 missiles were launched at Kyiv. Nearly all major administrative buildings, including the government building, were damaged. Particular attention was drawn to the luxury building in Mariinsky Park, home to the country’s top leadership and to Timur Mindich, a defendant in the corruption case. Notably, this is the only building in central Kyiv taller than the cross of the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra—a fact that, according to popular belief, bodes ill for the city.
[last part omitted]
**
Good question, Don.
Does Donald Trump really believe in anything at all besides himself? He is a solipsist. His only point of reference is himself. He has no genuine interest in other people and makes no attempt to fake it because he can’t really see them from his self-centered position.
SEE:
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/feb/08/donald-trump-media-coverage?CMP=share_btn_url
SEE ALSO:
Trump’s solipsism conforms to a tradition in psychology and philosophy for rendering the self an insistent source for all reality. With extreme forms of solipsism the external world and other minds cannot be known and may, in effect, have no existence. What results is continuous falsehood, whether of an almost automatic kind, or of the intentional form we call lying.
...
Is Trump’s solipsism, then, simply an extension of a cultural trend in American life? I would argue that it is something more. Despotic control over reality usually relates to specific goals, those having to do with the dictator’s holding onto power or furthering his pet projects. Trump is different. His solipsism is sui generis. He is psychologically remarkable in his capacity to manufacture and continuously assert falsehood in the apparent absence of psychosis. Those suffering from schizophrenic psychosis, for instance, can also be highly solipsistic in their hallucinations and delusions. But Trump does not appear to have hallucinations or delusions in a structured, classical sense. That is, without being psychotic, he is just as solipsistic as those who are. He in fact manifests a considerable talent for manipulating his solipsistic falsehoods in ways that enhance his own narrative and connect with related political projects.
SOURCE:
The Assault on Reality
Essential to understanding Trump is his attempt to subject the public to his own solipsistic reality—and thereby destroy our shared basis for democracy.
by Robert Jay Lifton, Dissent Magazine, April 10, 2018
https://dissentmagazine.org/online_articles/assault-on-reality-robert-lifton-trump/
John Stassi
**
Thank you for the updates on the SVO! Here are some other good sources:
(Borzzikman)
(Ruslan Belov)
Please stop asking so-called 'AI' any questions.
99.99% of the time, it is WRONG!
$75 Billion??
It's WAY more than that!
Maybe Russia can elist Mossad - those fkers seem to be able to find/kill ANYONE they don't like.