The crew member was aboard a F-15E Strike Eagle shot down by Iran; while the pilot was rescued earlier, the second airman remained missing for over 24 hours.
BY PC Bureau
April 5, 2026: US President Donald Trump on Sunday announced the rescue of a missing crew member from a downed F-15 fighter jet, declaring, “We got him,” after what he described as a “daring” military operation deep inside Iran.
The incident began on Friday when Iran shot down a US F-15E Strike Eagle carrying two personnel — a pilot and a weapons systems officer. While the pilot was rescued within hours, the second crew member remained missing for nearly two days.
In a post on his platform Truth Social, Trump said the rescue was carried out on his orders, with “dozens of aircraft” deployed, equipped with what he called the “most lethal weapons in the world.” He added that the rescued airman sustained injuries but is expected to recover.
Great News: An hour ago we received confirmation: the US has successfully rescued both F-15 aircrew downed in Iran. This is an unprecedented combined arms feat in the annuals of military history marrying the efforts of special forces, air forces, army rotary wing and close air… pic.twitter.com/d205wfOQOf
— Adam Parker (@AdingtonP) April 5, 2026
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According to reports by Al Jazeera, hundreds of US special operations forces were involved in the mission, which took place inside Iranian territory under heavy threat from air defence systems. The operation reportedly triggered a firefight before the airman was successfully extracted and flown to safety.
US forces are said to have used a range of advanced assets, including HH-60W “Jolly Green II” rescue helicopters, A-10 Warthog attack aircraft, F-35 stealth jets, and special combat search-and-rescue units to carry out the mission.
Details reported by Axios indicate the pilot was rescued shortly after ejecting, though a US Black Hawk helicopter involved in that effort was hit by Iranian fire and sustained damage. Locating the second crew member took more than a day.
US intelligence agencies, including the Central Intelligence Agency, reportedly launched a deception campaign to mislead Iranian forces about the airman’s whereabouts while tracking his movement through mountainous terrain. Once his position was confirmed, special forces were deployed overnight to carry out the extraction under air cover.
Trump described the rescued officer as a “highly respected Colonel,” saying he had been “behind enemy lines” but “was never truly alone,” as US military leadership monitored his location around the clock.
He also revealed that another pilot had been rescued in a separate operation a day earlier, which had not been disclosed at the time to avoid jeopardising the second mission.
Calling the twin rescues unprecedented, Trump said no American personnel were killed or wounded, and claimed the operations demonstrated “overwhelming air dominance” over Iranian skies.
Iran, however, has not officially confirmed the rescue. Iranian media earlier reported a reward for capturing the missing US airman, while the Revolutionary Guards claimed to have shot down another US aircraft involved in the search operation near Isfahan.
