What could a pilot, who crash-landed in the enemy country amid a war, face? As the news about Iran attacking two American fighter jets hit the headlines, Retired US Brigadier General Houston Cantwell spoke about survival strategies adopted when a pilot crash-lands in the enemy country alive.
What we know about the American fighter jets downed in Iran?
In a rare assault against the US, Iran reportedly shot down two American military aircraft on Friday — F15-E Strike Eagle fighter jet and A-10 attack aircraft.
Following the attack, the two countries raced each other on Saturday to recover a crew member of the first US fighter jet to go down inside Iran since the start of the war, AFP reported.
According to US media, the United States special forces had rescued one of the two crew members of the F-15 warplane, with the other still missing.
Iran’s military also said it downed a US A-10 ground attack aircraft in the Gulf, with US media saying the pilot was rescued, AFP reported.
This was a rare event in the US’ history. The last time a US fighter jet was shot down in combat was over 20 years ago, when an A-10 Thunderbolt II was downed during the 2003 US invasion of Iraq, said retired Air Force Brig. Gen. Houston Cantwell, a former F-16 fighter pilot.
A pilot’s survival guide
Brig. Gen. Houston Cantwell, a former Air Force pilot and a rescuer, told AFP what it takes to hide, survive and extract someone behind enemy lines. Cantwell logged 400 hours of combat flight experience, including missions over Iraq and Afghanistan.
“You’re like, ‘Oh my God, I was in a fighter jet two minutes ago, flying 500 miles an hour, and a missile just exploded, literally 15 feet from your head,'” Cantwell, who is now at the Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies, told AFP.
He said a pilot’s training — known as survival, evasion, resistance and escape (SERE) — would likely kick in before he or she parachutes to the ground.
“Your best view of where you may want to go or where you may want to avoid is while you’re coming down in your parachute,” Cantwell was quoted as saying.
The former airman explained that parachuting to the ground risks foot, ankle, and leg injuries.
“There are many stories of survivors from Vietnam that had severe injuries — compound fractures — just from the ejection,” he said.
Upon landing, “take an inventory of yourself to figure out, what condition am I in? Can I even move? Am I even mobile?”
Aviators then figure out where they are, whether it is behind enemy lines, where they can hide, and how they can communicate.
How to increase the odds of a safe rescue
“Try to avoid enemy capture, as long as you can,” Cantwell said. “And if I were in a desert environment, I’d want to try to find some water.”
Simultaneously, Combat Search and Rescue (CSAR) teams — highly trained soldiers and pilots already on alert — would be activated.
“It gives you tremendous peace of mind, knowing that, you know, they’re going to do everything they can to come get you,” Cantwell said. “At the same time, they’re not going to come on a suicide mission,” he added.
That’s where the missing crew-member can increase the odds of a safe rescue.
“My priority would be, first of all, concealment, because I don’t want to be captured,” he said. “I want to try to get to a location where I can get extracted.”
In a city, that may be a rooftop. In a rural setting, a field where helicopters can land. Movement is best at night, he said.
Cantwell said he also carried a pistol when he flew.
Rescue plan
Brig. Gen. Houston Cantwell told AFP that there is always a CSAR plan before any operations are conducted and once the missing aviator is located, a rescue plan is formulated in real time inside the helicopters.
“Those gunners are spotting and looking for threats, the pilots are looking for a place to land, we’re reaching out to that downed aviator,” he said.
On the ground, they ensure the pilot is actually the person they are searching for, and a threat-versus-medical-needs assessment is done.
In their minds, retired master sergeant Scott Fales said: “What kind of immediate threat are we in? How much time do we have to get this person out? What kind of injuries do they have? And then we’ll make up our mind on the type, amount of treatment that’s needed on the scene — or do we just grab and go depending on the threat?”
With a fellow soldier still unaccounted for in southwest Iran, Fales said he’s “very hopeful” the aviator will be located.
“I’m hoping that friendly people have found him and are hiding him,” he said. “Or he’s still evading.”
(With inputs from AFP)
