U.S. F-15 Downed Over Iran; Rescue Mission Underway
on Apr 03, 2026
One Crew Member Of the Two-Seater Plane Has Been Rescued
On Friday, April 3, a United States F-15 fighter jet was reportedly shot down by Iran.
A U.S. official told NBC News that one of the two-seater jet’s crew members has been rescued, and is receiving medical attention.
The other crew member is still unaccounted for, and a bounty of $60,000 has reportedly been placed on the soldier’s head by an Iranian regional governor.
A mission to rescue this soldier is being conducted by the United States military.
This has happened two days after President Donald Trump‘s Address to the Nation on April 1, during which he said of Iran, “They have no anti-aircraft equipment. Their radar is 100% annihilated. We are unstoppable as a military force.”
During the conflict, the allied nation of Kuwait reportedly accidentally shot down three U.S. fighter jets, but this is possibly the first to be shot down by Iran since the start of Operation Epic Fury on Feb. 28.
However, Iranian state media reports there could be an additional U.S. plane that was shot down on April 3.
Iranian news outlet Nour News reports that Iran’s IRGC Aerospace Force has shot down “two advanced US fighter jets,” one of which being an F-35.
This has not been confirmed by the United States, but the Iranian Revolutionary Guard has shared images of the purported wreckage, with a piece of shrapnel potentially placing it among the U.S. 48th Fighter Wing, stationed in England.
During Trump’s April Address to the Nation, he notably laid out the U.S. military’s progress in Iran, saying, “We are on track to complete all of America’s military objectives, shortly.”
He went on to say that Iran will be brought “back to the stone ages, where they belong,” noting that American action is expected to continue for two to three weeks.
The war in Iran, conducted under the title of Operation Epic Fury, began on Feb. 28.
A total of 13 American military personnel have been killed in action since the start of the war.
This is a developing story.
