Iran hunts missing US pilot after F-15E shot down; one crew rescued as search intensifies. Photos: X.
Iranian forces have launched a manhunt for a missing American pilot after two United States military aircraft were downed. The search operation, led by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), is underway in southwestern Iran following the shootdown of an American F-15E fighter jet, reports claimed.
According to reports citing US officials, one of the crew members aboard the two-seat aircraft has already been rescued, while efforts continue to locate the second crew member who remains missing inside Iranian territory as of Saturday.
Following the downing of the aircraft, the IRGC initiated a manhunt in the region where the jet went down. Iranian authorities have also urged civilians to assist in locating the missing pilot.
A regional governor reportedly promised a commendation and reward for anyone who captures or kills “forces of the hostile enemy,” intensifying the search effort in the area.
US officials confirmed that one of the two crew members from the F-15E fighter jet was successfully rescued on Friday. However, the second crew member remains unaccounted for, prompting an ongoing search operation by American forces.
The aircraft involved was a two-seater F-15E, which carries both a pilot and a weapons systems officer.
Amid the developments, Iran’s Parliament Speaker, Mohammad Baqer Ghalibaf, mocked the United States over the situation.
In a post on X, Ghalibaf said the war had effectively been “downgraded from regime change” to a hunt for missing American pilots.
The shootdown of the US military aircraft is a significant moment in the conflict. It is the first time US fighter jets have been brought down since the war began with US and Israeli strikes on Tehran on February 28.
More broadly, it represents the first time in 23 years that an American military aircraft has been shot down during an armed conflict.
The previous instance occurred during the 2003 US invasion of Iraq, when an A-10 Thunderbolt II aircraft was shot down.
Iranian state media also reported a second incident involving a US A-10 attack aircraft.
According to the reports, the A-10 Warthog was struck by Iranian defence forces and later crashed after the pilot ejected. The aircraft went down in Kuwait, though the pilot managed to escape safely following the ejection.
The downing of the two aircraft has highlighted the risks that US and Israeli warplanes continue to face while operating over Iran.
The incidents come despite repeated assertions by Donald Trump and his defence secretary Pete Hegseth that American forces have “total control of the skies” in the conflict zone.
Despite the shootdown of the F-15E and the ongoing search for the missing crew member, President Trump indicated that the incident would not affect diplomatic engagement with Iran.
In a phone interview with NBC News, Trump said the development would not impact ongoing indirect negotiations.
“No, not at all,” Trump told NBC News correspondent Garrett Haake. “No, it’s war.”
Zubair Amin is a Senior Journalist at NewsX with over seven years of experience in reporting and editorial work. He has written for leading national and international publications, including Foreign Policy Magazine, Al Jazeera, The Economic Times, The Indian Express, The Wire, Article 14, Mongabay, News9, among others. His primary focus is on international affairs, with a strong interest in US politics and policy. He also writes on West Asia, Indian polity, and constitutional issues. Zubair tweets at zubaiyr.amin
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