US President Donald Trump announced on April 4 (US time) that the US military had completed the successful rescue operation of the 2nd pilot of the F-15 fighter jet shot down in Iran.
Writing on the social network Truth Social, Mr. Trump said that in the previous hours, US forces conducted one of the most bold search and rescue operations in history, aimed at bringing a flight crew member back. According to him, the rescued pilot was a wounded colonel but is now "safe and sound".
The US leader added that he had directed the deployment of dozens of aircraft and heavy weapons to support the operation. He emphasized that this is the first time in US military history that 2 pilots have been rescued separately when deep within enemy territory, and affirmed that no soldiers were killed or injured in this process.
Previously, on April 3, the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps announced that it had shot down an F-15 fighter jet in mid-Iranian airspace using an air defense system. Initial reports said that the two pilots managed to parachute before the plane crashed, but their condition was not immediately determined afterwards.
A pilot was rescued by US forces by military helicopter and taken to safety. Meanwhile, the Iranian side said that people in Kohkilouyeh and Boyer-Ahmad provinces have participated in searching for US soldiers who may have survived, carrying weapons and patrolling on a large scale.
