How much longer can the U.S. military reserves sustain operations against Iran?

Ask AI · How Can Aircraft Carrier Repairs Expose the U.S. Military’s Overextension?

Reference News Network March 28 report The German business newspaper Handelsblatt website published an article on March 25 titled How Long Can the U.S. Military’s Reserves Last? The author is Markus Fasse and Frank Schepechit. The article excerpts are as follows:

For three weeks, Israel and the United States have continued bombing Iran. It is reported that U.S. President Trump has now proposed a plan that could potentially end the war. Since this week, the U.S. military’s attack capability has been weakening.

According to The New York Times, in just the first week, U.S. military operations cost $11.3 billion, mainly for high-precision special munitions. The annual munitions budget for all branches of the U.S. military is $25 billion, and the Pentagon has now requested doubling the budget. At the same time, deployed weapon systems such as aircraft carriers are also nearing their limits. Experts have particularly pointed out the following four points.

1. The “Ford” carrier’s withdrawal weakens the U.S. military’s advantage

Clogged toilets, a fire in the laundry room—because the U.S. Navy’s largest aircraft carrier, the “Ford,” was severely damaged, it had to undergo repairs in waters near the Greek island of Crete. Military expert Frank Schol said: “The ‘Ford’ carrier’s withdrawal from the combat zone weakens the U.S. military’s strike capability. Specifically, this means about 70 fewer fighter jets.”

In addition to the F-35 stealth fighter, the “Ford” also carries electronic warfare aircraft such as EA-18 “Growlers.” These aircraft are crucial for detecting and destroying Iran’s radar stations.

In Schol’s view, the departure of the largest U.S. warship is also a sign of the U.S. military’s overextension. Schol said: “The ‘Ford’ is about to set a record for days at sea. The last time a U.S. aircraft carrier carried out a mission lasting nearly 300 days was during the Vietnam War.”

In fact, before the Iran conflict, the “Ford” had already taken part in military operations against Venezuela.

For the U.S. Atlantic Fleet based in Norfolk, Virginia, the situation is extremely serious. In addition to the “Ford,” the “Harry S. Truman” and “John C. Stennis” aircraft carriers will also enter overhaul in the coming months. Because the other carriers need to be deployed in the Pacific, the U.S. military is temporarily unable to carry out large-scale military operations in the Middle East.

2. Replacing cruise missiles with bombs

The “Tomahawk” cruise missiles are also becoming increasingly scarce. As of mid-2025, the U.S. military is reportedly believed to have about 4,000 of these missiles in reserve, but a large portion of the inventory was already consumed in last year’s first round of airstrikes against Iran and the Houthi forces. Since late February this year, the U.S. military is reportedly already fired as many as 800—while its annual production is fewer than 100.

Schol said: “The consequence is that the U.S. military’s airstrikes currently use almost exclusively precision-guided bombs dropped by aircraft. The inventory of ‘Tomahawk’ cruise missiles has been greatly reduced, so there is a need to use them sparingly.”

Tom Kariko, director of the Missile Defense Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), said that manned aircraft can now operate relatively safely in the region. Therefore, the U.S. military can now conduct attacks with cheaper and more plentiful bombs instead of using expensive and scarce long-range weapons from outside the defended area.

3. Long-range bombers open the final stage of the war

The U.S. military is increasingly using long-range bombers to offset the impact of the “Ford” being out of action and the shortage of “Tomahawk” cruise missiles. In last June’s attacks on Fordo and Natanz nuclear facilities, the U.S. military already used B-2 stealth bombers launched from the continental United States.

Now, the U.S. Air Force has deployed B-1 and B-52 bombers to the United Kingdom. Because multiple countries refuse to open their airspace to U.S. aircraft, these planes have to take detours over the Mediterranean Sea. This requires complex and expensive aerial refueling.

4. A shortage of “Patriot” missiles will be a challenge for years to come

In just the first few days of the war, Gulf countries are reportedly fired as many as 800 “Patriot” air defense missiles. “Patriot” is considered one of the few systems capable of intercepting ballistic missiles, and it is also being used in Ukraine.

However, according to a German defense-industry executive, Ukraine is extremely frugal in using the small number of missiles it has, while Gulf countries sometimes use up to six “Patriot” missiles to intercept a single incoming Iranian missile—and the unit price of a “Patriot” missile is as high as several million U.S. dollars.

It is said that global demand is currently five times production. Last year, U.S. defense industry deliveries were 600 missiles. At an “ammunition summit” early in March, President Trump demanded that defense manufacturers significantly increase production capacity.

Under framework agreements signed with Lockheed Martin and others, the two sides agreed that the production of “Patriot”-3 missiles for “Patriot” air defense systems will be doubled, while the production of intercept missiles for the “THAAD” missile defense system will be tripled. (Compiled by Jiao Yu)