US Use of Costly Weapons Against Iran Tests Limits of Inventory

The US has a massive stock of easy-to-produce, air-dropped precision bombs — as President Donald Trump implied in a social media post this week — but has been using costly and less-numerous standoff weapons in its attacks on Iran, sapping supplies meant for more formidable enemies.

For instance: Opening salvos of the war included BGM-109 Tomahawks, slow but accurate cruise missiles with a range of more than 1,000 miles designed to hit targets deep in well defended territory.

They cost several million dollars apiece, and the US has about 4,000 remaining in its stockpiles, said Kelly Grieco, a senior fellow ...