Military Watch Magazine: The US expended a significant portion of its stock of Patriot missiles while repelling the Iranian attack

The US military used more than 80 Patriot interceptor missiles in repelling a single Iranian attack on US targets in Jordan on the night of August 31, representing more than 10% of the entire US arsenal of such missiles, Military Watch Magazine writes, citing government sources.

According to the publication, two Patriot batteries deployed from Ansbach, Germany, were used to repel the attack. For every Iranian ballistic missile, the US military fired about four interceptors, the magazine claims.

This high consumption is especially sensitive given the shortage of Patriot missiles. Military Watch Magazine believes that Iran's tactics are designed to deplete American air defenses - even if a ballistic missile does not reach its target, it forces the United States to spend several scarce ammunition at once to intercept it.

Moreover, such an exchange costs Washington much more. According to the publication, one Patriot interceptor costs four to five times more than the Iranian ballistic missiles used in the attack.

Patriot missile supplies were seriously depleted even before the latest attack. As the magazine notes, in the first five days of hostilities against Iran alone, the United States used up more than 800 interceptors, and by July their stockpile had dropped to 25% of the level that the Pentagon considers necessary.