Iranian forces launched a manhunt Saturday for a missing American pilot after shooting down two US warplanes over Iran and the Gulf region. The downing of an F-15E Strike Eagle and an A-10 Warthog marks the most significant losses for US aviation since the conflict began six weeks ago.
Iranian fire brought down the two-seat F-15E jet over southwestern Iran's Khuzestan province, with one crew member still unaccounted for. A second aircraft, an A-10 Warthog, crashed in Kuwait after being struck by Iranian fire, though its pilot successfully ejected and was rescued.
The incidents expose the vulnerability of US and Israeli aircraft despite repeated assertions from President Donald Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth that American forces maintain total air superiority over Iran.
Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps deployed search teams across the crash zone while regional officials offered rewards for capturing the missing airman. The regional governor promised commendations for anyone who captured or killed what he termed "forces of the hostile enemy."
The war had been 'downgraded from regime change' to a hunt for pilots
Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, Parliament Speaker — Al-Monitor
Two Black Hawk helicopters involved in the search and rescue operation took Iranian fire but managed to escape Iranian airspace. The extent of injuries to their crews remains unclear, according to US officials who spoke to Reuters.
The missing pilot faces extraordinary challenges in hostile territory. US aircrew receive Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape training, but few American airmen speak Persian fluently. Iranian officials have flooded social media with purported images of aircraft wreckage and called on civilians to watch for survivors.
Trump monitored the rescue operation from the White House while Iranian celebrations erupted across social media platforms. Iranians, subjected to weeks of American airstrikes since the February 28 offensive began, posted messages celebrating the aircraft downings.
The prospect of an American service member alive in Iranian territory dramatically escalates political pressure on Washington. The conflict already faces low public support among Americans with no clear end in sight.
Diplomatic efforts have stalled completely. Iran told mediators it would not meet with US officials in planned Islamabad talks, and Pakistan's ceasefire mediation efforts have reached a dead end, according to Wall Street Journal reporting.
The war has claimed 13 American military lives with over 300 wounded, according to US Central Command figures. Thousands more have died since the initial strikes that killed Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, triggering a conflict that has sparked an energy crisis and threatens lasting global economic damage.