The United States' successful recovery of the second of a two-man F-15E crew approximately two days after a two-person crew was downed by Iranian forces, with multiple aircraft and U.S. service members involved in the mission.
Search-and-rescue operations began April 3 after the U.S. fighter jet, an F15E Strike Eagle, was taken out overnight and images of the aircraft's alleged wreckage quickly surfaced across social media. One of the pilots was rescued that same day with assistance from two U.S. military helicopters, both Black Hawks, according to reports, at least one of which took damage from small arms fire and wounded some crew members on board.
An A-10 Warthog aircraft also provided close air support to the rescue mission on Friday, according to ABC News, and was hit by Iranian fire before managing to escape the scene towards Kuwait. That was when the pilot reportedly ejected safely prior to the crash of the aircraft.
On Sunday, more information circulated after a Weapons Systems Officer (WSO) was successfully rescued as part of what President Donald Trump on Sunday described as "one of the most daring Search and Rescue Operations in U.S. History."
Jeffrey Fischer, a retired U.S. Air Force colonel, told Military.com that the first rescue may have been even more impressive.
"I'd argue the first recovery was utterly amazing...and crazy risky," Fischer said. "No planning, daylight, on-the-fly efforts to find the pilot."
The second mission, while bold, was far less risky. Planned and rehearsed, nighttime, known entities.
The Pentagon declined to comment to Military.com, instead deferring to a White House X post that quoted the president's sentiments on the successful rescues.
How WCO Was Rescued
Multiple U.S. aircraft played a role in successfully retrieving American pilots from enemy territory.
Two C-130 aircraft that were part of the WCO rescue mission and were described as "stuck" at an undisclosed location in Iran, per ABC News citing a U.S. official, which led to U.S. forces intentionally destroying the disabled aircraft so Iran would not be able to take it for themselves.
Those two C-130s were blown up due to mechanical issues, while both aircraft that were destroyed were MC-130Js specifically designed for special operations missions.
Four MH-6 Little Bird helicopters, used to ferry U.S. military personnel from the landing strip where the MC-130J’s had landed to the mountainous area where the crewmember was located, were also deliberately destroyed by U.S. forces, according to ABC News. Three additional replacement aircraft had to be flown into Iran to take the airman and the rescue teams out of the country due to additional aircraft being taken down.
The War Zone speculated that among the wreckage of downed aircraft as part of the rescue operation appeared to include two burned-out wrecks of MH-6/AH-6 Little Birds of the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment, known as the Night Stalkers.
Reaction From Washington
Trump, in multiple Truth Social posts that started around midnight Sunday, announced the successful recovery mission that he said was at his direction. The pilot, whose identity remains unknown, was rescued after the U.S. military contributed "dozens of aircraft, armed with the most lethal weapons in the World, to retrieve him."
The president said the rescued pilot "sustained injuries, but he will be just fine."
"WE GOT HIM! 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!" Trump wrote on Truth Social.
"This brave Warrior was behind enemy lines in the treacherous mountains of Iran, being hunted down by our enemies, who were getting closer and closer by the hour, but was never truly alone because his Commander in Chief, Secretary of War, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and fellow Warfighters were monitoring his location 24 hours a day, and diligently planning for his rescue."
It was the first downed U.S. aircraft since the U.S. and Israel initially launched strikes against Iran on Feb. 28, and the first aircraft overall to be taken down in more than 20 years.
U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), which did not publicly comment on the downed F-15 or about the rescue operation, said in a press release Sunday that the United States' successful rescues were completed April 4, with "the service members safely recovered during separate search and rescue missions."
U.S. strikes into Iran continue as U.S. Central Command forces dismantle the Iranian regime’s ability to project power beyond its borders. - CENTCOM
Trump said the situation was "the first time in military memory that two U.S. Pilots have been rescued, separately, deep in Enemy Territory," adding, "WE WILL NEVER LEAVE AN AMERICAN WARFIGHTER BEHIND!"
"The fact that we were able to pull off both of these operations, without a SINGLE American killed, or even wounded, just proves once again, that we have achieved overwhelming Air Dominance and Superiority over the Iranian skies," Trump wrote. "This is a moment that ALL Americans, Republican, Democrat, and everyone else, should be proud of and united around. We truly have the best, most professional, and lethal Military in the History of the World."
CIA Role in Rescue Operation
ABC News reported that the CIA played a significant role as well in the operation, helping to find the airman's location as part of a "needle in a haystack" search inside a mountain crevice. That information was purportedly passed onto the Pentagon and White House to launch the rescue operation.
They cited a senior Trump administration official who said 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."
"The president ordered an immediate rescue mission, which the DoW [Department of War] executed with boldness and precision, with CIA continuing to provide real time information," the official told ABC.
Trump reportedly told Axios on Sunday that the U.S. showed trepidation at the beginning of the rescue mission due to concerns that stress calls from the stranded crewmember was an Iranian ploy intended to trap more Americans.
About 200 soldiers from special operations units participated in the operation, according to Trump, and that Iranians "got lucky" by shooting down the F-15 with a shoulder-fired missile. "They got lucky." The president added that "thousands of these savages were hunting him down.
"Even the population was looking for him. They offered people a bonus if they captured him," the president added.
The WCO, according to reports and a pithy statement on Sunday from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, said into his radio device after ejection: "God is good."
