The US military is engaged in a desperate search for a missing pilot after an American warplane was shot down by Iran, which has now offered a reward for the pilot’s capture. The incident marks a significant escalation in the six-week-old conflict, with Tehran calling on its citizens to turn in the airman.
The aircraft, identified by Iran as a US F-15E Strike Eagle, was one of two targeted on Friday. While one service member was rescued, at least one remains unaccounted for. This represents the first time the United States has lost an aircraft in Iranian territory during the ongoing hostilities, potentially signalling a new and dangerous phase in the campaign.
The conflict, initiated by the US and Israel on 28 February, has sent shockwaves across the Middle East and beyond. Thousands have been killed, global markets destabilised, crucial shipping lanes disrupted, and fuel prices have soared. With Iran continuing to retaliate against US and Israeli airstrikes, the violence shows no signs of abating. Saturday saw further missile and drone attacks, including an apparent Iranian drone strike that damaged the headquarters of US tech giant Oracle in Dubai.
The downing of the military jet occurred just two days after Donald Trump had declared in a national address that the US had “beaten and completely decimated Iran” and was “going to finish the job, and we’re going to finish it very fast.” Both the US and Israel had recently boasted about the supposed decimation of Iran’s air defenses.
Neither the White House nor the Pentagon released public information about the downed planes.
In an email from the Pentagon obtained by The Associated Press, meanwhile, the military said it received notification of “an aircraft being shot down” in the Middle East, without providing more details.
A U.S. crew member from that plane was rescued. But the Pentagon also notified the House Armed Services Committee that the status of a second service member on the fighter jet was not known. A U.S. military search-and-rescue operation continued Saturday.
In a brief telephone interview with NBC News, Trump declined to discuss the search-and-rescue efforts but said what happened would not affect negotiations with Iran.
Separately, Iranian state media said a U.S. A-10 attack aircraft crashed in the Persian Gulf after being struck by Iranian defense forces.
A U.S. official who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive military situation said it was not clear if the aircraft crashed or was shot down or whether Iran was involved. Neither the status of the crew nor exactly where it went down was immediately known.
An anchor on a TV channel affiliated with Iranian state television urged residents to hand over any “enemy pilot” to the police.
Throughout the war, Iran has made a series of claims about shooting down piloted enemy aircraft that turned out not to be true. Friday was the first time the Iranian public was urged to look for a downed pilot.
Iranian state media said in a post on the social platform X its military shot down a U.S. F-15E Strike Eagle. The aircraft is a variation of the Air Force fighter jet that carries a pilot and a weapons system officer.
An apparent Iranian drone damaged the Dubai headquarters of the American tech giant Oracle on Saturday after Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard threatened the firm.
