Report: Special Forces Rescue F-15 Crew Member in Iran

A U.S. fighter jet has crashed inside Iran, and American forces are working urgently to locate at least one missing crew member, according to U.S. officials cited in reports by several news outlets. Sources told Axios and the Wall Street Journal that U.S. special operations forces managed to find and recover one of the pilots in southern Iran, while efforts continue to locate the second. Both crew members reportedly ejected from the F-15 after it was struck by Iranian fire. The incident marks the first confirmed loss of a U.S. aircraft inside Iran since the fighting began more than a month ago.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed that President Trump has been informed about the situation but declined to share further details. According to officials who spoke with the Associated Press, Israel has been assisting with the search-and-rescue effort.

Adm. William J. Fallon, who previously led U.S. Central Command, told the New York Times that American pilots receive extensive SERE training—short for Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape—to prepare for situations where they might be shot down behind enemy lines. The training teaches pilots how to eject safely, conceal themselves to avoid capture, and use emergency radios included in their survival gear to communicate with U.S. forces.

Iranian state media at first broadcast messages encouraging civilians to shoot Americans on sight. Later reports instead instructed people to capture any Americans alive and hand them over, promising a “precious prize” in return.

Video footage verified by the Washington Post shows a U.S. C-130 tanker flying at low altitude over southwestern Iran, roughly 90 miles from the Iraqi border. The aircraft was refueling two HH-60G helicopters used for combat search-and-rescue missions, which military analysts say are among the most dangerous operations carried out by U.S. forces.

Tasnim, a news agency affiliated with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, claimed the F-15 was shot down by Iranian air defenses. The outlet referred to only one crew member and also alleged, without providing evidence, that an F-35 had been destroyed elsewhere in the country. Iranian officials have previously made similar claims about downing American aircraft that were never confirmed.

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