All Six Crew Members Die After US Refuelling Plane Crashes In Iraq

ALL six members of a United States (US) military refuelling aircraft’s crew have been confirmed dead after it crashed in western Iraq, US Central Command (Centcom) said.
Rescue efforts after the loss of the KC-135 later confirmed the death of the two crew members who were initially missing, even as it insisted neither hostile nor friendly fire were involved in the downing of the aircraft.
The tanker had been involved in ongoing US operations against Iran and was one of two aircraft involved in the incident. The second landed safely.
The Boeing-manufactured aircraft are capable of refuelling planes midair and typically play a major role in US military operations. They were used extensively in the first Gulf War to extend the range of fighter jets and bombers.
Centcom said the incident occurred around 14:00 ET (19:00 GMT) on Thursday, March 12, and that the circumstances of the crash were under investigation.
The US military command unit added that the identities of the dead personnel were being withheld for 24 hours, so their next of kin could be notified.
The KC-135 usually has a crew of at least a pilot, a co-pilot and a boom operator responsible for controlling the refuelling arm of the aircraft.
Centcom earlier described the crash as happening over friendly airspace, but this is a region of Iraq where pro-Iranian militias operate. Iran’s military claimed on state television that an allied group had targeted the plane with a missile.
Thursday’s crash brings the official US military death toll in the US-Israel war with Iran, which began a fortnight ago, to 11.
The US military has now lost at least four aircraft during the current war.
Earlier this month, three F-15s were shot down in “an apparent friendly fire incident” over Kuwait, officials said. All six crew members were able to safely eject.
Boeing manufactured the KC-135 Stratotanker for the US military in the 1950s and early 1960s. It has been a backbone to the US military’s air refuelling fleet, and allow combat aircraft to carry out longer missions without needing to land.