A U.S. crew member who went missing when an F-15E fighter jet was shot down over a remote area of Iran was rescued by U.S. forces early Sunday morning local time, multiple U.S. officials told CBS News. The jet’s pilot was rescued Friday.
“WE GOT HIM!” Mr. Trump confirmed in a Truth Social post. “My fellow Americans, over the past several hours, the United States Military pulled off one of the most daring Search and Rescue Operations in U.S. History, for one of our incredible Crew Member Officers, who also happens to be a highly respected Colonel, and who I am thrilled to let you know is now SAFE and SOUND!”
The president said that the rescued officer had “sustained injuries, but he will be just fine.”
Of the rescue operation, the president said that “at my direction, the U.S. Military sent dozens of aircraft, armed with the most lethal weapons in the World, to retrieve him.”
U.S. officials had previously told CBS News the jet was carrying a two-person crew when it was downed by Iranian forces Friday.
Iranian Revolutionary Guards took credit for the strike, alleging the jet was brought down in southwestern Iran Friday morning. Photos of debris that Iranian media said showed the wreckage of the downed U.S. fighter jet appeared consistent with an American F-15, two weapons experts told CBS News.
The pilot of the F-15E had safely ejected and was rescued by two military helicopters, U.S. officials earlier said, but the second crew member, a weapons system officer, had remained missing.
During Friday’s recovery efforts, a U.S. chopper carrying the rescued pilot was struck by small arms fire, wounding crew members on board, U.S. officials said, but the helicopter landed safely.
An A-10 Warthog that was part of Friday’s search mission took fire and was damaged. The Warthog’s pilot ejected over the Persian Gulf and was successfully recovered, U.S. officials said.
Mr. Trump on Friday put some other operations on pause in Iran to prioritize the search and rescue, directing hundreds of special operations forces to the effort, zeroing in on the stranded crew member’s beacon.
A U.S. official and a White House official confirmed to CBS News that U.S. commandos recovered the missing crew member in a complex operation that involved hundreds of special forces personnel, and several dozen warplanes and helicopters. And as U.S. forces were in the process of closing in on the stranded officer, a firefight broke out with Iranian troops, the two officials said.
There were no casualties among U.S. personnel in the rescue operation, and the rescued officer was flown to Kuwait to receive treatment for his injuries, the two officials said.
The New York Times was first to report details of the operation.
The harrowing military operation utilized bombs and weapons fire to keep Iranian troops away from where the missing officer was believed to be hiding, the two officials said. While stranded, he had only a handgun to defend himself, the two officials disclosed.
Two transport planes tasked with flying out rescue crews were unable to take off from a remote base in Iran. Those planes were demolished to keep them from being captured by the enemy, the officials said, and the commandos flew out on three extra aircraft that were sent in to fetch them.
The three rescue planes flew out of Iran to Kuwait, each just a short distance behind each other, the officials disclosed. The mission was completed just before midnight, with all U.S. forces out of enemy airspace.
The CIA was deeply involved in the rescue mission, a senior Trump administration official told CBS News Sunday.
Prior to locating the airman, the CIA launched a deception campaign, spreading word inside Iran that U.S. forces had already found him and were moving him on the ground for exfiltration out of the country.
While the deception operation was ongoing, the agency used its capabilities to track the crew member in a mountain crevice, the official said.
The CIA shared the crew member’s exact location with the Pentagon and the White House, the official said. The president ordered an immediate rescue mission, with the CIA continuing to provide real-time information.
The downing of the F-15E fighter jet marks the first time a U.S. fighter jet has been shot down in combat in over 20 years, retired Air Force Brig. Gen. Houston Cantwell, a former F-16 fighter pilot, told The Associated Press.
At least four U.S. fighter jets have been shot down since the Iran war began on Feb. 28, but three of those were in a friendly-fire incident, the Pentagon said. On March 1, three American F-15s were “mistakenly shot down by Kuwaiti air defenses,” U.S. Central Command said at the time, and there were no casualties from that incident.
Until Sunday’s announcement, Mr. Trump had been mostly silent on the subject of the search, telling The Independent in a phone interview Friday that he couldn’t comment on what he might do if the crew member were captured by Iran.
“Well, I can’t comment on it because — we hope that’s not going to happen,” Mr. Trump said.
In his social media post Sunday, Mr. Trump said the White House’s silence was in order to protect the missing officer, saying the U.S. military “did not confirm” Friday’s rescue of the F-15E’s pilot “because we did not want to jeopardize our second rescue operation.”
Mr. Trump on Saturday also issued another warning to Iran regarding its control over the Strait of Hormuz, telling the Iranian regime it had 48 hours to reopen the crucial waterway or “all Hell will [sic] reign down on them.”
Since the war began, the virtual closure of the strait — which sees about 20% of all global oil traffic — has caused fuel prices to skyrocket worldwide.
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