US plane 'goes down' in Iraq as military says 'two aircraft involved in incident'

The US military said a KC-135 refuelling aircraft was lost in friendly airspace during Operation Epic Fury, with rescue efforts ongoing in western Iraq

The US military has reported the loss of a refuelling aircraft in "friendly airspace" during Operation Epic Fury.

The US Central Command confirmed the incident on Thursday evening, saying that rescue efforts were ongoing.

In a statement, they said: "U.S. Central Command is aware of the loss of a U.S. KC-135 refuelling aircraft. The incident occurred in friendly airspace during Operation Epic Fury, and rescue efforts are ongoing. Two aircraft were involved in the incident. One of the aircraft went down in western Iraq, and the second landed safely.

"This was not due to hostile fire or friendly fire.

"More information will be made available as the situation develops. We ask for continued patience to gather additional details and provide clarity for the families of service members."

A US official, who spoke to Associated Press on condition of anonymity to discuss a developing situation, said the other plane involved also was a KC-135 tanker.

The tanker is the fourth publicly acknowledged aircraft to crash as part of the US military's operations against Iran. Last week, the military confirmed that three American fighter jets were mistakenly downed by friendly Kuwaiti fire.

All six crew members safely ejected from the F-15E Strike Eagles and were in stable condition after being recovered, the U.S. said.

Seven American troops have been killed in combat during the Iran war so far. About 140 U.S. service members have been wounded, including eight severely, the Pentagon said earlier this week.