One crew member was rescued Friday after an American aircraft was shot down in Iran, according to one U.S. and one Israeli official, who both spoke on condition of anonymity to describe sensitive ongoing military operations.
The rescue occurred as the U.S. military was conducting a search and rescue operation, according to three people familiar who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitivity of the situation. Israel is helping the United States with the operation.
It would be the first time the U.S. has lost aircraft in Iranian territory during the five-week war.
Lieutenant Colonel Ebrahim Zolfaghari of Iran’s joint military command said: “Following false claims by the U.S. president about the complete destruction of Iran’s air defence system, an American hostile fighter jet was shot down in central Iranian airspace.”
“The jet was completely destroyed, and further search operations are still ongoing,” the spokesman of the Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters added in a speech on Friday from Iran.
According to an email from the Pentagon obtained by The Associated Press, the U.S. military said that it received notification of “an aircraft being shot down” in the Middle East. The email did not provide more details.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a previous statement that President Donald Trump had been briefed but did not offer any additional information.
The number of crew on board wasn’t immediately known.
