Multiple reports indicate that three American F-15 fighter jets were shot down over Kuwait in a friendly fire incident.

Kuwait has been a U.S. defense partner in the Middle East since it was liberated by an American-led coalition in the 1991 Iraq War. It hosts Camp Arifjan, a U.S. Army base which is a staging ground for regional U.S. operations. It is one of the Gulf nations that, though generally aligned with the U.S., declined to permit its territory and airspace to be used in operations against Iran. Nevertheless, its position changed after Iran attacked it anyway on Saturday in response to the invasion by American and Israeli forces. (I posted about this over the weekend, here and here.)

On Sunday, mistakenly perceiving that it was being attacked, Kuwaiti activated its air defense system (of which the U.S. is the principal supplier). They struck the three American jets. All six crew members ejected before crashing, were safely recovered, and are being treated for injuries.

Over the weekend, a Wall Street Journal report explained that there are major concerns about dwindling U.S. munition stockpiles. The big problem is interceptors: We’re running out of what we use to destroy enemy missiles and drones in the sky before they can hit their targets. Consequently, a priority in the Iran invasion that began Friday night was to destroy Iran’s stockpiles and launchers before they can be used.

Offense has its costs, too. Each F-15 costs close to $100 million. The air defense assets needed to shoot down aircraft is costly, too. The biggest problem, though, is that these are highly sophisticated aircraft, systems, and weapons; it takes time to replace them.

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