The second crew member of a US F-15E fighter jet shot down over Iran has been rescued by American special forces, ending a two-day search. The officer, a colonel and weapons systems officer, was wounded but successfully extracted from a mountain hideout in south-west Iran, President Donald Trump announced.
Trump described the operation as 'one of the most daring search-and-rescue operations in US history' and claimed no American casualties. He said a press conference would be held at the White House to provide further details. The pilot had been rescued earlier on Friday after the F-15E became the first US plane downed over Iran during the five-week conflict.
In subsequent social media posts, Trump threatened to bomb Iranian power plants and bridges if the Strait of Hormuz was not reopened to merchant shipping. He wrote: 'Open the Fuckin’ Strait, you crazy bastards, or you’ll be living in Hell.' He later told the Wall Street Journal that all the country's power plants would be destroyed.
Iran's military claimed to have destroyed four US aircraft involved in the search operation, including two Hercules transport planes, two Black Hawk helicopters, and a Reaper and Hermes-900 drone. State media showed images of charred wreckage. US media confirmed that two modified Hercules had to be destroyed after becoming bogged down, with three more planes flown in to complete the extraction.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu congratulated Trump, drawing parallels to Israel's own daring rescue operations. Footage emerged of night-time clashes in Iran's Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad province near the rescue area. The CIA led a disinformation campaign in Iran to fool forces on the ground during the search.
