The cost of U.S. military operations against ISIL through September 24 is likely between $780 and $930 million. The cost of future operations depends primarily on how long operations continue, the intensity of air operations, and whether additional ground forces are deployed beyond what is already planned. Assuming a moderate level of air operations and 2,000 deployed ground forces, the costs would likely run between $200 and $320 million per month. If air operations are conducted at a higher pace and 5,000 ground forces are deployed, the costs would be between $350 and $570 million per month. If operations expand significantly to include the deployment of 25,000 U.S. troops on the ground, as some have recommended, costs would likely reach $1.1 to $1.8 billion per month. On an annualized basis, the lower-intensity air operations could cost $2.4 to $3.8 billion per year, the higher-intensity air operations could cost $4.2 to $6.8 billion per year, and deployment of a larger ground contingent could drive annual costs as high as $13 to $22 billion.
The CSBA, however, said, if air operations are increased to a higher pace and 5,000 ground forces are deployed, the U.S. could pay between $350 million and $570 million per month.
If air operations are expanded significantly and 25,000 U.S. troops are put on the ground, the price tag could reach $1.1 to $1.8 billion per month, the CSBA said. In such a scenario, the report said roughly 80 percent of the cost of the war would be based on the ground presence.
Here is the full 7 page report
If the campaign goes back to the Iraq war size the costs were about $150 billion per year. The Afghanistan war reached about $80-100 billion per year.
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