A U.S. fighter jet was shot down in Iran on Friday, with a search and rescue operation looking for possible survivors.
Both Reuters and The New York Times cited U.S. officials confirming the fighter jet had been shot down and that a rescue mission appears to be underway.
President Donald Trump has been briefed on the downing of the jet, according to White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt. Neither the White House nor U.S. Central Command have commented publicly on the status of the jet or the circumstances in which it was downed.
According to Iranian state-affiliated media, the jet was an Air Force F-15E fighter jet with a two-person crew.
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The Times reported that a news outlet affiliated with Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, Tasnim, said that American Black Hawk helicopters and C-130 Hercules aircraft began a search for the crew but withdrew after attacks from the Iranian military. However, another Iranian outlet, Fars, said it was unclear who the search operation helicopters belonged to.
If confirmed, the downing of the jet would be the first known instance of a U.S. combat aircraft going down in Iran since the U.S.-Israel operations began in late February. The Iranian military did hit an American fighter jet in March, though it was able to make an emergency landing at an air base in the Middle East.
On March 1, three U.S. F-15 fighter jets were shot down by Kuwaiti air defenses, which Central Command called a “friendly fire incident.”
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