The US Air Force has lost at least seven aircraft in the war with Iran, while the fate of a US serviceman remains unknown after an F-15 fighter jet was shot down over Iran. Sources say US forces are currently searching for the crew member, and Iranian state media has offered a reward to those who find him, CNN reports, writes UNN.
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The loss of an F-15 fighter jet and an A-10 aircraft of the US Air Force in separate incidents on Friday brings the total number of known manned aircraft losses in the war with Iran to seven, the publication writes.
Meanwhile, Reuters notes that Iranian forces on Saturday were searching for a missing American pilot from one of two military aircraft shot down over Iran and the Persian Gulf, "raising the stakes for Washington as the war entered its sixth week with dim prospects for peace talks."
Iranian fire shot down a two-seat American F-15E fighter jet, officials from both countries said, while two American officials said the pilot ejected from an A-10 Warthog fighter jet that crashed in Kuwait after Iranian fire.
Two Black Hawk helicopters involved in the search for the missing pilot were hit by Iranian fire but left Iranian airspace, two US officials told Reuters. The extent of the crew's injuries remained unclear.
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it was sweeping a southwestern area near the pilot's crash site, and a regional governor promised a reward to anyone who captured or destroyed "enemy forces."
Iranians, who have been under US air attack since the US and Israeli attacks began on February 28, celebrated the downing of the planes. Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf said the war had "shrunk from regime change" to hunting pilots.
Trump is in the White House and is being briefed on the progress of the rescue operation, a senior administration official told Reuters.
Iran told mediators it was not ready to meet with US officials in Islamabad in the coming days and that Pakistan's ceasefire efforts had stalled, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday.
The conflict has killed 13 US service members and wounded more than 300, according to US Central Command.
CNN also reported the circumstances of the loss of the remaining five aircraft:
- March 2: three F-15 fighters were shot down by Kuwaiti air defense in a "friendly fire" incident over Kuwait. All six crew members ejected, and US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said this week that three pilots had returned to combat in raids on Iran;
- March 12: six US Air Force crew members were killed when their KC-135 tanker aircraft crashed in Iraq. The US military said the tanker aircraft was not shot down by enemy or friendly fire but was involved in an incident with another aircraft while participating in Operation Epic Fury. The second aircraft landed safely, the statement said;
- March 27: a US Air Force E-3 Sentry airborne warning and control aircraft was destroyed on the runway in an Iranian attack on Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia, as shown in photos obtained by CNN indicating the location. CNN reported that at least 10 US service members were injured in the attack on the air base. No deaths were reported. According to sources, a US Air Force tanker aircraft was also damaged.
In addition, last month, a US F-35 fighter jet made an emergency landing at a US air base in the Middle East after it was likely fired upon by Iranian forces, two sources familiar with the situation told CNN.
Iran searches for missing American pilot after downing of plane04.04.26, 04:32