US forces are in a race against time to save a missing fighter jet pilot whose aircraft was shot down by Iranian air defenses in a chaotic day of fighting – after a second American aircraft was also downed.
Iranian state media shared footage on Friday appearing to show a US A-10 Warthog plane being blown out of the sky, and reports say a second US aircraft, an F-15E Strike Eagle, was also downed hours earlier.
The joint incidents led two pilots to eject into enemy territory, and the F-15E pilot remains unaccounted for after US forces successfully saved the A-10 pilot in a daring rescue mission.
US forces are now desperately searching behind enemy lines to retrieve the missing pilot, with an urgent rescue mission underway.
On Friday evening, updated Pentagon data also revealed the number of US service members wounded in the Iran war has risen to 365 soldiers.
The total included 247 Army soldiers, 63 Navy sailors, 19 Marines and 36 Air Force airmen. The death toll for the conflict remains at 13 US service members.
Following reports that the two US aircrafts were shot down on Friday, White House officials said President Donald Trump was briefed on the relief efforts.
A senior administration official told the Daily Mail that the President’s national security team is gathered at the White House and the President has been working all day from the Oval Office, or the Oval’s dining room, receiving updates.
In a brief phone interview, Trump declined to discuss details of the search and rescue operation, and insisted that it would not affect ongoing negotiations with Iran.
When asked by NBC News reporter Garrett Haake whether the plane incidents could end negotiations between Iran and the US, the President responded: ‘No, not at all. No, it’s war. We’re in war, Garrett.’
It marked the first time a US jet has been downed by enemy fire since the start of the war 35 days ago.
Meanwhile, Newsmax reported that a US Black Hawk was hit by enemy fire while conducting rescue operations for the pilots. The crew is reportedly accounted for and is safe.
An A-10 Warthog combat plane crashed in the Persian Gulf near the Strait on Hormuz on Friday but the pilot was rescued, according to the New York Times.
Later Friday, Iranian state media claimed credit for the plane crash, saying Iranian defense forces struck the A-10.
Iranian state media also urged civilians to capture the pilots on the Strike Eagle, with a ‘reward’ offered by the Islamic regime.
Israeli media reported that the missing airmen has likely sent out his emergency location signal out to the rescue team.
Footage has emerged of tribesman shooting at what appears to be an Air Force HC-130J Combat King II, a specialized search and rescue plane.
Separate videos purported to show a US KC-130 refueling tanker and two HH-60 Pave Hawk search and rescue helicopters.
Iranian media released images showing debris as well as ejector seats from the downed F-15E, which costs approximately $100 million.
An anchor on Iranian state media urged local residents in Southern Iran to hunt down and hand over the ‘enemy pilot’ to regime authorities.
The local TV channel is based in Kohkilouyeh and Boyer-Ahmad province, an intensely rural and mountainous region, the Associated Press reported.
Viewers were also told to ‘shoot them if you see them,’ referring to US aircrafts flying low in the region in an apparent search for the crew members.
The regime has previously made a series of false claims about shooting down piloted US planes.
However, Friday was the first time state media has called on the public to look for the suspected American pilots.
If the regime did successfully shoot down a fighter jet, it would mark a major escalation in the war.
Trump vowed during an address to the nation on Wednesday night to wind down the conflict in the coming weeks.
As the war now enters its 35th day, Iran has launched new attacks on Gulf energy sites with strikes on a desalination plant and oil refinery in Kuwait as well as a gas complex in Abu Dhabi.
Multiple fires broke out at a Kuwaiti oil refinery after a drone attack, according to officials.
Benjamin Netanyahu has claimed most of Iran’s steel production has been destroyed after the US and Israel targeted facilities.
In a new video posted today, Netanyahu said: ‘Together with our American friends, we continue to crush the terror regime in Iran. We are eliminating commanders, bombing bridges, bombing infrastructure.
‘In recent days, the Air Force has destroyed 70% of Iran’s steel production capacity. This is a tremendous achievement that deprives the Revolutionary Guards of both financial sources and the ability to produce a large number of weapons.
‘In full coordination between myself and President Trump, between the IDF and the United States Army, we will continue to crush Iran. This regime is weaker than ever – Israel is stronger than ever.’
The Daily Mail has contacted the Pentagon for comment.
