--- title: "2 airmen died in noncombat incidents while supporting Iran war operations" description: "Two airmen supporting the Iran war died in non-hostile incidents in October, the Pentagon revealed late on Thursday." date: "2026-10-30" modified: "2026-10-30" authors: - name: "Nicholas Slayton" job_title: "Contributing Editor" link: "https://taskandpurpose.com/authors/nicholas-slayton.md" url: "https://taskandpurpose.com/news/iran-war-death-toll-23-air-force/" categories: - "Air Force" - "Around the World" - "Iran" - "Middle East" - "Military Branches" - "News" tags: - "adsafety" --- # 2 airmen died in noncombat incidents while supporting Iran war operations ![A U.S. Air Force crew chief marshals a U.S. Air Force A-10C Thunderbolt II aircraft at a base in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility Oct. 8, 2026. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Iain Stanley) ]() *An Air Force crew chief guides an A-10C Thunderbolt II at a base in the U.S. Central Command base. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Iain Stanley.* Two airmen supporting U.S. [operations against Iran]() died this month in noncombat incidents, the Pentagon revealed late Thursday, bringing the total number of American military fatalities in the war to 23. The incidents were logged in the [Defense Casualty Analysis System](), the Defense Department's casualty database, on Oct. 29. The Department of Defense has not identified the two airmen but said that the deaths occurred in October. According to details in the casualty database, both airmen were noncommissioned officers, with one man in his early 30s and the other older than 35. One served as an active duty airman, and the other was serving with the Air National Guard. An Air Force spokesperson said that one airman died of illness after being medically evacuated back to the United States. The other death occurred inside the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility and is under investigation. The two are the first Air Force deaths in the war in more than six months. Six airmen died in March in a mid-air collision between two refueling tankers. 11 of the 23 troops who died while supporting the war with Iran were killed in hostile incidents, while the other 12 were non-hostile deaths. The majority of the dead died in the first few months of the war. However, more than half of the more than 800 [wounded service members]() were injured since early July, in the category the [Pentagon refers to as overseas operations](). Earlier this month, the Pentagon [revised the death toll to 21](). The new figure added a soldier who died in the spring in a medical emergency and whose death had been acknowledged but not previously counted among the war casualties. The other death was a sailor with a Navy explosive ordnance disposal unit. The Washington Post reported her death was a suicide, although the database currently lists the cause as pending. Direct fighting between Iran and the United States has been paused for several weeks, after a burst of back-and-forth attacks in early September, although the war continues. President Donald Trump has repeatedly talked about renewing attacks in the near future and more forces are en route to the U.S. Central Command area of operations. The USS Theodore Roosevelt and a Marine Expeditionary Force are currently sailing to the Middle East. 865 service members have been wounded in action since Feb. 28. ***Update: 10/30/2026;** This article has been updated with information from an Air Force spokesperson.* ## Author Nicholas Slayton is a contributing editor for Task & Purpose, covering conflict for over 12 years, from the Arab Spring to the war in Ukraine. His previous reporting can be found on the non-profit Aslan Media, The Atlantic, Al Jazeera, The New Republic, The American Prospect, Architectural Digest, The Daily Beast, and the Los Angeles Downtown News. You can reach him at nicholas@taskandpurpose.com or find him on Twitter @NSlayton and Bluesky at @nslayton.bsky.social. ### Author social links [Twitter]() ## More - [More than three dozen sailors and Marines wounded this month in support of the Iran war]() - [Pentagon raises Iran war death toll to 21]() - [Pentagon identifies Virginia soldier as 19th death in support of Iran war]() - [Dozens more troops added to tally of wounded in Iran war amid new strikes]() - [More than 750 US troops wounded in Iran war, nearly half since July ]() - [Over 200 troops have been awarded Purple Hearts during the Iran war]() - [How the Pentagon counts — and leaves out — troops killed in war]() - [Pentagon reveals hundreds of new Iran war casualties]()