US military aircraft 'goes down' over Iraq after major incident involving two planes

 A major search and rescue mission has been launched by US Central Command after a military aircraft has gone missing following an incident between two planes.

The incident, which occurred sometime today (March 12), happened in friendly airspace, according to US officials.

Rescue efforts are currently ongoing but there has been no details on how many people were on board the aircraft. The second aircraft involved landed safety, but its location was not revealed by US Central Command.

Details of how the incident occurred have also not been shared but it is believed the tanker aircraft could have been refuelling the other plane at the time. However, this is currently unconfirmed.

Officials confirmed the incident was not as a result of hostile or friendly fire.

In a statement by US Central Command, they wrote: "US 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."

The incident comes a day after British troops came under attack at a military base in Erbil, Iraq, defence chiefs have said.

Defence Secretary John Healey was briefed on the latest updates on British action in the conflict in the Middle East during a visit to the Northwood military headquarters in Hertfordshire on Thursday.

Brigadier Guy Foden said: “Erbil and Baghdad were both struck a number of times last night, with increasing co-ordination we assess, and we have personnel in Erbil who are currently helping with the defence of that base.

“Last night they shot down two UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) coming out of the camp but a number of UAVs did impact on the camp.”

The Erbil base in northern Iraq houses coalition troops. There have been “no British casualties” and the US sustained “some” casualties overnight but “nothing too serious”, the UK’s chief of joint operations, Lieutenant General Nick Perry, said.