Second US F-15E pilot rescued in daring operation inside Iran

Washington, April 5. US President Donald Trump said on April 5 that the second crew member of an American fighter jet shot down over Iran has been successfully rescued in a high-risk military operation conducted deep inside Iranian territory.

Posting on Truth Social shortly after midnight, Trump wrote, “We got him… I am thrilled to let you know he is now safe and sound.”

He identified the rescued officer as a “highly respected colonel” who had been serving as a weapons officer aboard the F-15E Strike Eagle that Iran brought down on April 3.

Both airmen had ejected when the aircraft was hit. The pilot was recovered soon after in a search-and-rescue mission, while efforts continued to locate the colonel. During this period, US aircraft stepped up strikes on targets inside Iran, destroyed three bridges, one of them a key gateway to Tehran.

According to reports, Iran had placed a bounty on the US Air Force colonel, raising concerns that his capture could have provided Tehran with leverage. Amid the search, Trump warned Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, saying in an earlier post that “time is running out – 48 hours before all hell will reign down on them”.

Trump described the rescue as proof of American air superiority, saying dozens of aircraft armed with advanced weaponry were deployed “behind enemy lines in the treacherous mountains of Iran” to extract the officer.

“He sustained injuries, but he will be just fine,” the President said, adding that no US personnel were killed or wounded in the operation.

US media reports, citing officials briefed on the mission, said American aircraft bombed Iranian forces moving towards the colonel during the rescue, and a firefight also took place. One of the helicopters involved in retrieving the pilot was reportedly hit by Iranian fire but managed to exit the area.

Separately, another US aircraft, an A-10 Thunderbolt II, was also shot, but he managed to fly out of Iran before crashing near near the Strait of Hormuz on April 3. He was rescued immediately.

Aircrew typically carry locator beacons and communication devices to assist in such missions. Several helicopters and aircraft were deployed as part of the intensive search effort, and US troops reportedly entered Iranian territory to carry out the rescue.

The incident comes just two days after Trump had claimed in a national address that Iran’s air defence systems had been “totally destroyed”.