US Pilot Downed F-15E Plane Rescued In Iran 48 Hours Later
- By Metropolix ~
- April 5, 2026 --
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— US Pilot Downed F-15E Plane
By Cyril Kingsley
United States weapons systems officer who went missing after his aircraft was downed in Iran was successfully rescued following a complex military operation.
The officer, a colonel, ejected alongside the pilot when their F-15E Strike Eagle was hit early Friday in southwestern Iran.
He reportedly survived for nearly 48 hours behind enemy lines, taking cover on elevated terrain after climbing several thousand feet up a ridge.
During that period, the officer is believed to have used either an encrypted communication device or a locator beacon, enabling U.S. forces to determine his position.
Hundreds of American personnel were involved in the recovery mission, including elite special operations units and air assets from multiple branches of the military.
According to a senior official, there was no direct firefight with Iranian forces, although U.S. troops fired weapons to deter approaching personnel from the extraction site.
U.S. intelligence agencies also played a key role in the operation.
Officials said the Central Intelligence Agency carried out a deception effort inside Iran, spreading information that the missing officer had already been located and was being moved for extraction.
The move was aimed at creating confusion among Iranian forces while intelligence assets worked to pinpoint the officer’s location.
Described as a highly challenging search, officials said the officer had concealed himself within mountainous terrain, making detection difficult.
Once the location was confirmed, the CIA relayed the information to the Pentagon and the White House.
President Donald Trump subsequently authorized an immediate rescue operation, which was carried out by U.S. Central Command with real-time intelligence support.
The officer was recovered safely, officials confirmed.
How Iran reacted:
Following the downing of the F-15E, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) cordoned off some parts of the mountainous southwestern Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad province because they believed the airman went down in the vicinity.
Iranian media also reported that parts of the southern Khuzestan region, an important energy hub, were being scrutinised. That region was the focus of heavy US-Israeli strikes on Saturday that killed at least five people and injured dozens.
Iranian authorities, in a rare move, called on the public on Friday to help find and capture the missing American soldier. State media reported that Tehran offered a $60,000 reward for the airman as clips on state TV repeatedly played footage showing the remnants of the downed US aircraft.
Nomadic tribes in the area, appearing to heed the calls, set about searching for the US airman. Footage from state media showed men carrying rifles and Iranian flags moving in between the mountains of the country’s southwest region.
Some successfully shot at two US Black Hawks that were part of the rescue mission, Iranian officials said. The BBC also verified footage appearing to show Iranian men firing their rifles at US helicopters.
Nomadic groups in Iran, and elsewhere, usually carry rifles to protect their cattle from wildlife and bandits.
The IRGC on Sunday claimed that Iranian forces destroyed two C-130 aircraft and two Black Hawk helicopters during the operation to rescue the US pilot in southern Isfahan.
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