A Congressional Research Service report and maritime security data, published within days of each other, give figures on US aircraft losses and on attacks on tankers near the Strait of Hormuz.
The estimate comes from a report dated 5 October by the Congressional Research Service (CRS), a research body that works for the US Congress. It covers incidents from 28 February, when the United States and Israel launched Operation Epic Fury, to mid-September, Stars and Stripes reported.
According to the newspaper, the breakdown includes 45 MQ-9 Reaper drones, up to 12 F-15E Strike Eagles, seven KC-135 tankers and seven helicopters. Gulf News and Business Today also reported the overall figure of 81.
The figures are cumulative. They cover the period from the start of the war to mid-September and do not describe the most recent week.
The count is not limited to aircraft downed in combat. Stars and Stripes and Gulf News reported that it includes aircraft lost to enemy fire, friendly fire, mishaps in the combat zone and destruction on the ground. It also covers aircraft that were damaged rather than destroyed.
The CRS noted that the picture could change. "Some damaged aircraft may have been returned to active service… Conditions remain fluid," the report said, as quoted by Stars and Stripes.
The CRS put the replacement cost at between $1.9bn and $3.3bn. According to Stars and Stripes and Gulf News, it drew on a September estimate from the Congressional Budget Office. Gulf News said that estimate covered equipment lost through 1 August.
Stars and Stripes reported that the document did not address US personnel killed or wounded.
Separately, attacks on tankers around the Strait of Hormuz reached their highest weekly level since the war began on 28 February, according to maritime security sources cited by several outlets.
Business Recorder reported that there were at least 12 attacks on oil, liquefied natural gas and liquefied petroleum gas tankers between 28 September and 5 October. The figure came from data supplied by three maritime security sources, which the outlet did not name.
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) centre issued warnings of tanker strikes by what it called "unknown projectiles", according to gCaptain, Splash247 and Seatrade Maritime. The UKMTO has not named an attacker in the reports cited.
One strike on 1 October caused a fire, and the crew were safe, the outlets reported. On 5 October a tanker was hit, causing an engine-room fire.
UKMTO also said a tanker north of Khasab was hailed by the Revolutionary Guards and ordered to turn back or face attack, Splash247 reported.
The attribution of activity to Iran came from the Joint Maritime Information Center (JMIC), a US Navy-led body. Business Recorder and inkl reported that, in a note on 4 October, the JMIC said attacks, attempted attacks and harassment by Iran's Revolutionary Guards had persisted. It listed drone overflights, surveillance and VHF radio hailing.
No response from Iran or the Revolutionary Guards to the JMIC's description, or to the tanker figures, had been reported in the coverage reviewed.
gCaptain noted that UKMTO reports are voluntary and often arrive late. Weekly counts therefore depend on reports filed after the event.
Shipping data pointed to a sharp fall in traffic. The National reported, citing data from the analytics firm Kpler, that seven commodity ships crossed Hormuz on Tuesday 6 October. That was the lowest daily figure since 23 July.
Kpler analysts Emmanuel Belostrino and Yui Torikata said in a note dated 6 October that crude crossing the strait fell 27 per cent from the previous week's wartime high. The volume was at least 10.1 million barrels a day, according to The National.
Business Recorder said the attacks came amid a bigger export push by Gulf producers.
The two sets of figures measure different things over different periods. The CRS report covers aircraft over more than six months, while the tanker data covers one week. Neither source links the two.
The war began on 28 February, when the United States and Israel launched Operation Epic Fury, according to Stars and Stripes and Gulf News. Vessels named in UKMTO-related reporting by Seatrade Maritime include the Kuwait Oil Tanker Company supertanker Al Funtas and the ADNOC-managed supertanker Mersin Prosperity.
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