US pilot rescued in 21-aircraft operation after plane was shot down over Iran
A US Air Force pilot has described being rescued in a 21-aircraft operation after his plane was shot down over Iran. The incident involved two US troops, known by the mission call signs Alpha and Bravo, who were ejected from the damaged aircraft and separated on the ground. They landed roughly five miles apart in a mountainous area south of Isfahan before being recovered.
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According to the supplied account, the aircraft was a two-seat F-15E jet that was brought down by a shoulder-fired missile. Bravo said he broke his back, shoulder and arm in the crash and described surviving as a miracle. He said he hit the ground at what he estimated was between 70 and 100 miles per hour, and recalled seeing no parachute when he looked up after ejecting.
The rescue effort for Bravo reportedly took 48 hours, while Alpha was recovered within six hours. The operation involved 21 aircraft, and the US Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth, said there was intense fighting during the mission. He described the recovery of Alpha as a gunfight on the way in and on the way out, while the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Dan Caine, also discussed the operation in comments to the broadcaster.
The incident is significant because it involved a US military aircraft being shot down over Iranian territory and a prolonged effort to recover personnel while evading Iranian forces. The location south of Isfahan places the event in a sensitive part of central Iran, and the scale of the response suggests a high-risk recovery mission. The account also highlights the vulnerability of aircraft to shoulder-fired weapons and the dangers faced by aircrew after ejection.
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The two airmen were identified by their mission call signs rather than full names in the supplied material. Bravo said the experience tested his survival and faith, while Alpha declined to be interviewed but said he and his family were thankful and proud to serve. The report frames the episode as a past military incident now being described in a new interview, rather than a current battlefield development.
What remains unclear from the supplied material is the exact date of the shootdown and the broader circumstances that led to the aircraft being over Iran. It is also not clear what unit the aircraft belonged to, or whether any Iranian personnel were injured during the recovery operation. Further official detail would be needed to establish the full sequence of events and the status of any wider diplomatic or military response.
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