MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Iran downs two US warplanes; search continues for missing crew member

During the rescue operation, two Black Hawk helicopters flying over Iranian territory were struck by enemy fire

Iran shot down a US F-15E Strike Eagle fighter jet over its territory on Friday, marking the first confirmed downing of a crewed American aircraft since the war began five weeks ago. A second plane, an A-10 Warthog attack aircraft, was also struck by Iranian fire and crashed after managing to exit Iranian airspace.

Both crew members aboard the two-seat F-15E ejected safely after the aircraft was hit. US special forces located and rescued one of them on Iranian soil; the crew member is alive, in US custody, and receiving medical treatment. The search for the second continues. The A-10 pilot, flying a single-seat aircraft, ejected over Kuwaiti airspace, where the plane crashed. The pilot was recovered safely, according to NBC News.

During the rescue operation, two Black Hawk helicopters flying over Iranian territory were struck by enemy fire. Both aircraft returned to their base; their crews sustained injuries but are out of danger, according to The Washington Post.

Iran initially claimed to have downed an F-35 stealth fighter, but wreckage photographed and circulated by Iranian state media matches an F-15E from the 48th Fighter Wing, based at RAF Lakenheath in the United Kingdom, according to multiple independent analyses. Iranian authorities offered a reward for locating the crew members; merchants in Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad Province posted a bounty of approximately $60,000.

The downing contradicts recent assertions by senior US officials of complete dominance over Iranian airspace. President Donald Trump, however, downplayed the incident. In a phone call with NBC News, he said the shootdown would not affect negotiations to end the conflict. “No, not at all, it's war,” he said.

But the diplomatic track has reached a dead end. According to The Wall Street Journal, Iran officially informed Pakistani mediators that it is unwilling to meet with American officials in Islamabad and considers Washington's demands unacceptable. Tehran also rejected a US proposal for a 48-hour cessation of hostilities conveyed on Wednesday through an unnamed intermediary country, Reuters reported, citing the semi-official Fars news agency. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has reiterated that Iran will only accept a permanent end to the war, not a temporary truce.

Israel, meanwhile, postponed planned strikes against Iran so as not to interfere with the American search and rescue operations, an Israeli official confirmed.