Update: (April 4, 2026, 07:30 ET) Administration officials told the BBC that the pilot of the downed F-15E was rescued, and it is the weapons officer who is still missing. The US is still looking for the weapons officer. Other US planes were forced down, but all the airmen are safe.
🚨 RACE AGAINST TIME — U.S. CREW DOWN BEHIND ENEMY LINES
A U.S. F-15E has been shot down over Iran.
One crew member recovered.
One still missing.
Right now:
U.S. forces are searching.
Iranian forces are searching.
Whoever finds him first…Controls the narrative.
This… pic.twitter.com/gJvaIquPdr
— Jim Ferguson (@JimFergusonUK) April 4, 2026
Story April 3, 2026
Earlier today, we heard reports that the second pilot on the F-15E who ejected was in communication with central on an encrypted line. They had the night and the darkness to find him. Ret. Brigadier General Blaine Holt said two reliable independent sources told him the weapons officer has been retrieved. The weapons officer and the pilot were on the jet. It’s possible the one person retrieved was the weapons officer. CBS said the pilot was rescued. In any case, General Holt believes they have both the pilot and the weapons officer.
🚨 CBS reports the downed F-15E pilot was rescued by two U.S. military helicopters, while the search continues for the second crew member, a weapons systems officer. The helicopter carrying the recovered pilot was hit by small arms fire, wounding crew onboard, but it landed… https://t.co/aBTxLe3qka
— Drop Site (@DropSiteNews) April 3, 2026
Original Story
An American F-15E fighter jet was downed over Iran, U.S. officials confirmed Friday, and two U.S. officials tell CBS News one crew member from the plane was rescued by U.S. forces.
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- A U.S. F-15E fighter jet was downed over Iran, and a crew member was rescued by American forces, U.S. officials told CBS News.
The F-15E is flown by a two-member crew, and a search and rescue effort is ongoing, sources said.
Earlier Friday, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard claimed to have shot down a U.S. fighter jet over Central Iran.
Photos and video were circulating on social media, shared by Iranian state news outlets, suggesting at least one U.S. C-130 aircraft and two Black Hawk helicopters were spotted flying low over central and southwest Iran in what was described as a possible effort to locate and recover the crew.
BREAKING: One of the U.S. crew members from the downed F-15E jet in Iran has been rescued, according to CBS News.
The search and rescue mission is still ongoing.
“One crew member from the U.S. F-15E fighter jet downed over Iran was rescued by American forces, two U.S. officials… pic.twitter.com/MLBnzONZr7
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) April 3, 2026