US pilot rescued after Iran shoots down fighter jet as urgent search for second serviceman still underway

George Bunn
Fri, 03 Apr 2026 16:17:21 +0000

A crew member from an American fighter jet that was shot down over Iran has been rescued by US forces.

Iranian officials called on civilians to be on the lookout for survivors and have flooded social media with images that purport to show wreckage from the aircraft.

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 incident follows threats by US President Donald Trump to bomb the country back to the "Stone Age," including to attack Iran's energy infrastructure and desalination plants, as he presses Tehran to end the war on US terms.

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One of the US officials briefed on the incident said the aircraft was an F-15 fighter jet.

William Goodhind, a forensic imagery analyst with Contested Ground, said images of the plane's tail fin seen in photos posted on social media are consistent with that of an F-15E Strike Eagle, which carries two crew.

So far, 13 US military service members have been killed in the conflict and more than 300 have been wounded, according to the US Central Command.

No US troops are known to have been taken prisoner by Iran.

President Trump has been briefed on the US fighter jet that was downed over Iran on Friday, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt has confirmed.

Iranian news agencies said US helicopters were flying low on apparent search missions and carried videos of residents shooting at them.

The Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps said it was combing an area near where the plane came down in the south west of the country.

Both President Trump and War Secretary Pete Hegseth have insisted their forces had total control of the skies over Iran.

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President Trump said the US can open the Strait of Hormuz with a little more time, as pressure mounts for his administration to find a quick resolution to a war against Iran.

"With a little more time, we can easily OPEN THE HORMUZ STRAIT, TAKE THE OIL,& MAKE A FORTUNE," the President said in a post on Truth Social.

Nearly five weeks after it started ⁠with a joint US-Israeli aerial assault, the war in Iran continues to spread chaos across the region and roil financial markets, raising the pressure on Mr Trump to find a quick resolution to the conflict.

Iran has effectively shut down the Strait of Hormuz , a key waterway that carries about a fifth of the world's total oil consumption, in retaliation for US-Israeli strikes that began in late February.

Reopening it has become a priority for governments around the world as energy prices soar.

In the speech on Wednesday night, President Trump repeated his threats against Iran's civilian power plants and gave no clear timeline for ending hostilities, drawing vows of retaliation from Iran and depressing share prices.