According to The Washington Post, which quoted two U.S. officials, a U.S. fighter jet crashed in southern Iran on Friday. A mission to find and rescue the two crew members is ongoing. The aircraft appeared to be an Air Force F-15E, based on officials’ accounts and images of wreckage circulated by Iranian state media, the report said. The Pentagon did not immediately respond to a request from the Post for a comment.
According to Tasnim News, an Iranian outlet, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps brought down the fighter jet. The outlet referred to only one crew member, saying a pilot had ejected and landed inside Iran. That claim was not independently confirmed.
The Washington Post noted that Iranian authorities have repeatedly made unverified claims during the conflict about downing U.S. aircraft and destroying planes on the ground. On Friday, the IRGC claimed that a new advanced air defense system had destroyed an F-35 over central Iran.
Video verified by The Washington Post showed a C-130 refueling aircraft flying low in western Iran, about 90 miles from the Iraqi border. The tanker was seen refueling two HH-60G helicopters used in combat search-and-rescue missions, according to Mark Cancian, a senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. He said the flight suggested rescuers were willing to take substantial risks.
This incident marked the fourth reported loss of an F-15 since the conflict began. The Post said three F-15s were mistakenly shot down by Kuwaiti personnel in early March, though all six crew members in those incidents were recovered safely. The newspaper also said 13 American service members have been killed so far in Operation Epic Fury, with nearly 370 wounded. The condition of Friday’s missing crew remained unclear.
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