NYT learned about the depletion of Patriot missile stocks from the United States during the conflict in Iran

The war in Iran has depleted stocks of critical and expensive U.S. weapons, including Patriot interceptor missiles. This was reported on April 24 by The New York Times (NYT), citing the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS).

"According to internal estimates by the Pentagon and congressional representatives, more than 1.2 thousand such missiles have been used in the war so far. <...> The cost of one Patriot interceptor missile can reach almost $4 million. In 2025, the United States produced about 600 such missiles," the article says.

Stocks of other critically important weapons for the American army were also seriously depleted during the Middle East conflict. Thus, CSIS calculations show that since the beginning of the war, the military has used about 1.1 thousand JASSM-ER air-to-ground missiles, more than 1 thousand PrSM and ATACMS ballistic missiles, which has led to the depletion of the arsenal of this type of weapons. In general, CSIS analysts estimate the spending of the American authorities on conducting a military operation in Iran at about $28 billion.

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American political scientist Malek Dudakov pointed out on April 22 that the US military in the region had used up most of its stocks of precision missiles and anti-missiles for air defense systems, and now they had to resort to aerial bombs, which meant the risk of fighter jets invading Iran's airspace and destroying them.

Anatoly Matviychuk, a retired military expert, noted at the same time that for the first time the United States was faced with a war for which its doctrine was not designed, therefore, American missile stocks were sharply depleted. At the same time, Americans quickly draw conclusions: a decision has already been made to restore Tomahawk and Patriot stocks, but this will take from a year to a year and a half, the expert added.