US Central Command said three US Air Force F-15E Strike Eagle strike fighters flying in support of Operation Epic Fury went down over Kuwait at 7:03 Kuwait time on March 2, 2026, in what it described as an apparent friendly fire incident.
CENTCOM said the fighters were mistakenly shot down by Kuwaiti air defenses during “active combat” that included attacks by Iranian aircraft, ballistic missiles, and drones. All six aircrew ejected safely, were recovered, and were reported in stable condition.
CENTCOM said Kuwait had acknowledged the incident and thanked Kuwaiti defense forces for supporting recovery efforts, adding that the cause remains under investigation and that additional information would be released as it becomes available.
Kuwait’s Ministry of Defense had earlier said several US military aircraft had crashed in the country and that all crew members survived and were evacuated for medical checks, without specifying aircraft types, locations, or the number involved.
In a statement shared on social media, Kuwait Defense Ministry spokesperson Colonel Saud Al-Atwan said search-and-rescue operations were launched immediately after the incident.
The spokesperson said the crews were evacuated from the crash sites and transferred to nearby medical facilities, with their condition described as stable, and that Kuwaiti authorities were coordinating directly with US forces to determine the circumstances of the incident.
Kuwait’s air defenses include US-built MIM-104 Patriot surface-to-air missile batteries and the older MIM-23 HAWK system.
The announcement came after several unverified videos circulated online showing an F-15E Strike Eagle being shot down. Other clips suggested at least three aircrew were recovered by local security forces, a detail that, if accurate, would imply more than one aircraft was involved, since an F-15E carries two crew.
Some social media posts have described the incident as a possible friendly fire loss. However, no official statement has confirmed the cause of the crashes, and the US military has not publicly commented on the incident.