DID Press: The Wall Street Journal reports that U.S. forces fired between 60 and 70 Patriot interceptors and more than a dozen THAAD interceptors to counter about 20 Iranian ballistic missiles during a recent attack on the Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan.
According to the report, the Iranian ballistic-missile barrage targeted the U.S. military presence at the Jordanian base. Although U.S. air defenses intercepted many of the incoming missiles, some penetrated the defenses and damaged several American military aircraft, according to U.S. officials cited by the Journal.
The scale of the interceptor expenditure was significant. The Journal reported that the number of missiles fired was roughly equivalent to what the U.S. military has used during an entire week at some other points in the conflict. U.S. officials have also said that Iran has increasingly used more complex missile tactics, including different trajectories, maneuvering warheads and warheads that separate into multiple projectiles near their targets.
Separate reporting by Reuters and CBS News said the attack damaged one A-10 Thunderbolt II and about eight F-15 fighter jets at Muwaffaq Salti. The F-15s reportedly sustained light damage and were returned to service, while the A-10 suffered more substantial damage.