The Iran conflict entered a potentially dangerous new phase Sunday as the Pentagon was reported to be preparing plans for weeks of ground operations, more U.S. troops poured into the region, and an Iranian missile strike destroyed a $300 million U.S. surveillance aircraft at Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia.

According to reporting from the Washington Post, cited by The Guardian and others, Pentagon planners are weighing options ranging from special operations raids to conventional infantry deployments. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt clarified that the Pentagon's preparations give the president "maximum optionality" but do not represent a decision to invade.

A further 3,500 U.S. soldiers and Marines arrived Sunday as part of a force led by the warship USS Tripoli, adding to an estimated 50,000 U.S. troops already in the region. The Pentagon is also reportedly considering deploying up to 10,000 additional ground troops. Iran's government warned that any U.S. forces entering Iranian territory would be "set on fire."

In the most significant confirmed U.S. hardware loss of the conflict, an Iranian strike destroyed a U.S. Air Force E-3 Sentry early warning and control aircraft on the ground at Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia, injuring multiple American service members. The $300 million aircraft is one of roughly eight in the U.S. fleet.

For San Diego County, where MCAS Miramar, Naval Air Station North Island, and Camp Pendleton anchor one of the largest military communities in the country, these developments carry real weight. Congressional debate over war powers authorization continued Sunday, with Republican Sen. James Lankford telling NBC that limited special forces operations were very different from long-term occupation — but lawmakers stopped short of requiring formal authorization.