U.S. F-15E fighter jet shot down over Iran, search and rescue mission underway, officials say
Category: News & Politics
Via: perrie-halpern • 7 months ago • 9 commentsBy: Courtney Kube (NBC News)
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Iran shot down the F-15E Strike Eagle, a U.S. official said, and the American military was scrambling to find the second aviator after a regional governor offered a bounty for its crew.
A U.S. aircraft that was mobilized to support the search and rescue mission was also struck by Iranian fire after the F-15E jet was downed, a U.S. official told NBC News.
That aircraft, a single-pilot A-10 Thunderbolt, known as a Warthog, made it to Kuwaiti airspace, where the pilot ejected and the aircraft crashed, the official said. The pilot is safe and the A-10 is down in Kuwait, according to the official.
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Two U.S. military Blackhawk helicopters that were involved in search and rescue efforts were also struck by Iranian fire, but the service members were unharmed, according to a U.S. official.
Iran's media published photos alongside claims from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps that it had shot down the F-15E. The Pentagon and the White House did not immediately comment on the claims.
In a brief phone interview on Friday, President Donald Trump declined to discuss specifics of the rescue operation. When asked if Iran's actions would negatively affect any negotiations to end the war, the president said, "No, not at all. No, it's war."
Trump has said that the U.S. has been negotiating with Iran to end the war. Iran says there is no direct negotiation.
Trump did not immediately mention the U.S. fighter jet on his Truth Social account, instead referencing Iran's oil. "Keep the oil, anyone?" he posted Friday afternoon.
This is the first time it appears that a U.S. aircraft has gone down inside Iran as part of this latest conflict, dispelling the notion that the U.S. has complete control over the Iranian airspace. In recent days, the U.S. has ramped up the number of bombing runs over the country.
A regional governor in Iran's southwest had issued a public plea Friday for locals to find those on board the F-15E and promised a reward, according to official and semi-official Iranian news organizations; a representative of merchants and businesses was reportedly offering the equivalent of $60,000.
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Iranian authorities offering a reward for the capture of American aircrew02:13
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said President Donald Trump had been briefed on the incident — the latest dramatic development in the war, now more than a month old.
Trump has declared success and pressured Iran to agree to a deal to end the war, while massing new troops in the Middle East and threatening intense escalation if Tehran doesn't reopen the vital Strait of Hormuz trade route.
It will also add to doubts over American-Israeli claims of dominance over Iran's skies. The joint campaign has focused intensely on destroying and degrading Iran's missile defenses, but Tehran has retained the capability to hit back across the region.
Iran has claimed previously to have struck American military planes, but the U.S. has not confirmed any such incidents during the war.
Debris from what the Revolutionary Guard claims to be a second U.S. fighter jet destroyed over central Iran, shared via Telegram on Friday.via Telegram
U.S. Central Command said an F-35 fighter jet made an emergency landing March 19, but stopped short of confirming this was the result of an Iranian attack.
Kuwait accidentally shot down three U.S. fighter jets near the start of the war.
The rescue operation Friday followed a morning of reporting by Iranian media and military observers on social media.
Nour News, an outlet linked to the Revolutionary Guard, said the jet "was destroyed in the skies over central Iran by a new advanced air defense system of the IRGC Aerospace Force."
A channel affiliated with Iranian state television claimed that a U.S. pilot ejected from their aircraft over a rural region of southwestern Iran. An anchor urged residents to hand over any "enemy pilot" to police and promised a reward for anyone who did.
An on-screen crawl earlier urged the public to "shoot them if you see them," referring to videos circulating of what appeared to be U.S. aircraft in the area. The semiofficial Mehr news agency later published videos that it said showed "brave locals firing at U.S. helicopters" with guns.
Responding to photos published by outlets in Tehran, one expert told NBC News that the "structure looks like an F-15."
"From the tail flash stripe markings from the 48th Fighter Wing, based at RAF Lakenheath in the United Kingdom," said Peter Layton, a former officer in the Australian air force and visiting fellow at the Griffith Asia Institute in Australia.
A U.S. official also told NBC News that the downed jet is believed to be based out of Royal Air Force Lakenheath.
The base in Suffolk, eastern England, and RAF Feltwell in the neighboring county of Norfolk host the 48th Fighter Wing, comprising some 7,000 active-duty personnel and four squadrons of F-15 Strike Eagles and F-35A Lightning II fighter jets.
It is the largest U.S. fighter operation in Europe and has been a key hub of American activity heading to the Middle East.
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The question I have is whether the IRGC recently received new air defense systems and from whom?
I hoping we get the last pilot back soon.
China and Russia are irans military suppliers.
15000 sorties and one plane shot down. Iraq was much more successful in the gulf war by comparison. China’s not going to be invading Taiwan anytime soon after watching how its equipment has performed against the Americans and Israelis. Their failures already cost the designer of their anti stealth radar his life.
So far, as of yesterday, we lost an A-10, rescued the pilot, replacement cost unknown because A-10s cannot be replaced or replicated.
Yesterday we lost another F15E ( $66 million) one of the two fliers was rescued, but one of the Blackhawks was damaged with multiple injuries to the crew, during the Search and rescue mission. One flier still missing. now they say both were hit but there were no injuries ( they are lying)
One KC-135C crashed with the loss of 6 lives, another damaged in the same incident.
Seven KC 135C s damaged on Saudi airfields.
One S-3 AWACS cut in half and totaled by a missile that struck the rear fuselage of the plane while being prepped for flight, multiple injuries.
Three other F15E s were shot down by Kuwait in error two weeks ago. (-$198Million)
So far 16 MQ 90 Reaper drones have been lost in Iran. 15 in the air and one in Saudi Arabia sitting on the runway. ( $500 million in losses )
The Israelis' have also lost a few Reapers and a dozen home grown variants.
Oh I am sure that that it's more than just the Chinese wondering how the Iranians are doing it and how they can learn and improve on it.
Imagine eliminating our Reapers all together.
trump and his insider friends are making big money on this war, along with russia, NK, china, and iran ...
So, no questions to the President on how he could claim they have no air defense system and we're winning this war so hugely but then have two of our planes shot down? No? Just going to assume the President was telling the truth so over a 48-hour period after those comments were made Iran must have been sent an air defense system from Russia or North Korea? Really?
Try using a little bit of reasoning. Through 4 weeks Iran hadn't been able to shoot down a place. Suddenly within about 24 hours they brought down a F-35 fighter jet and an A-10, and they damaged a helicopter that made it to Iraq. 2 + 2 has to equal 4.
As for Trump he responds to what he is by military leaders. Take it up with Gen Cain, who never said we eliminated every weapon Iran had.
Pakistan is an emerging power broker in the Middle East with ties to both Saudi Arabia and Iran as well as ties to China and Russia. Iran does share a border with Pakistan.
Iran could get a nuclear weapon from Pakistan with a donkey train.
Talk about consorting with an enemy: Trump is the best at everything.
Pakistan and Afghanistan had a bit of a dust up a few weeks back. I wonder if Trump ended that "excursion" or was it a three day war?
There is a shaky cease fire with regular violations all but disappeared from the news with Epstein.
... oops, all of trump's doge savings of last year were negated on the first day of trump's iran war ...