US officials have claimed that one of the two crew members of a downed warplane in Iran has been rescued, while attempts are being made to locate the other. According to US media reports citing unnamed sources, American special forces rescued one of the crew members after the fighter jet, believed to be an F-15E, was shot down over Iran.
Photos and videos circulating on social media showed what appears to be US helicopters and other aircraft flying at low altitude over the presumed site of the downed fighter jet.
US F-15 goes down in Iran
The F-15 fighter was crewed by a pilot and a weapons-systems officer in the back seat when it went down, making it the first known loss of a US fighter jet in the ongoing war.
Earlier, Iranian media aired footage of aircraft wreckage, claiming that it was of an , but according to CNN, it was most likely from an F-15.
William Goodhind, a forensic imagery analyst with Contested Ground, also told Reuters that images of the plane’s tail fin seen in photos posted on social media are consistent with that of an .
Iran initially claimed shooting down US F-35
Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency had first reported the downing of the jet on Friday, saying that Iran had shot down a “highly advanced American fighter jet.”
Later, the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) also said it had successfully hit a US Air Force F-35 stealth fighter jet in central Iran’s airspace. According to a statement released by the IRGC, the jet was struck at 2:50 am local time by the IRGC’s advanced, modern air defense systems.
“The fate of the fighter jet is unclear and under investigation, and the likelihood of its crash is very high,” it said.
The US has not officially acknowledged the loss of its fighter jet in combat, but reports said that President Donald Trump had been briefed on the situation.
;Reward’ for capturing US crew member
Meanwhile, Iranian officials have called on civilians to be on the lookout for survivors.
The governor of Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad province said anyone who captured or killed the crew “would be specially commended,” Iran’s semi-official news agency ISNA reported.
The downing of the US fighter jet comes a day after Trump posted a video of a destroyed bridge on social media and said there would be “much more to follow” if Iran didn’t agree to a deal to end the conflict.
Capture of US crew could change the war
So far, 13 have been killed in the conflict, and more than 300 have been wounded, according to the Central Command. The prospect of US military personnel being captured alive by Iran is more bad news for the Trump administration, as it will make the ongoing war even more unpopular among Americans in a crucial mid-term election year.
According to the latest Reuters/Ipsos poll, two-thirds of Americans believe that the US should work to end its involvement in the conflict quickly, even if that means not achieving the goals set out by the Trump administration.
- The downing of the F-15 highlights the increasing dangers faced by US military personnel in Iran.
- Public opinion is shifting toward a desire for a swift resolution to the conflict, regardless of political objectives.
- The incident raises concerns about the potential for captured US service members impacting domestic political sentiments.
