Dozens of planes and CIA participation with purposeful fake news: how was the rescue of the American fighter pilot shot down in Iran

The rescue operation involved dozens of planes and hundreds of American military personnel. Reuters via BBC The United States rescued the pilot of the American F-15 fighter jet shot down on Friday (3/4) while flying over southern Iran. ✅ Follow the g1 international news channel on WhatsApp President Donald Trump confirmed the rescue on social media on Sunday morning (5/4), after the American armed forces “carried out one of the most daring search and rescue operations” in its history. The pilot is now “safe and sound”, he added. Two crew members were on board and both ejected from the aircraft. One of them had already been rescued, on Friday. Iranian officials said the fighter jet was shot down by its air defense system. Details about the rescue operation and how it unfolded are still being released. Here’s what we know so far. How was the rescue operation? See the videos that are trending on g1 The US and Iran were in a race to locate the pilot. Iran wanted to find the American alive and offered a reward for any help in the search. The exact circumstances of the rescue remain unclear, but one person involved in the operation described it as a “huge” mission. The BBC found that there was a confrontation between American and Iranian forces during the rescue, and the pilot may have been injured while ejecting the aircraft. Authorities told BBC partner CBS News that the officer spent more than 24 hours alone, hiding in the mountains with a pistol. CBS found that the CIA, the American Central Intelligence Agency, played a crucial role in the rescue mission, tracking the soldier in a mountain crevice and relaying his exact location to the Pentagon. The agency also conducted a disinformation campaign inside Iran. While the rescue operation was underway, the CIA spread the news that the soldier had already been found and was being evacuated from Iran. Two F-15E Strike Eagle jets flying side by side. Getty Images via BBC Rescuing the crew of a downed jet is one of the most complex and urgent operations — known as Combat Search and Rescue (CSAR) — for which the American armed forces and their allies are preparing. The units responsible for these missions include some of the most highly trained and specialized members of the military. Missions are often conducted by helicopters, which fly low over enemy territory, along with other military aircraft that carry out strikes and patrol the area. In his social media post, Trump said the airman, a colonel, “was behind enemy lines in the treacherous mountains of Iran, being hunted by enemies, who were getting closer and closer.” The president added that the airman’s location was monitored “24 hours a day” by senior American officials planning the rescue operation. Trump said the US military sent dozens of aircraft to Iran and added that the operation was carried out without any Americans being killed or injured. Iranian state media reported that troops from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) shot down an American drone as adversaries searched for the airman. The American drone crashed in the southern Iranian province of Isfahan. How are pilots trained to escape? US Air Force rescue units train intensively to rescue crews from downed aircraft behind enemy lines. Getty Images via BBC The crew of a downed jet is highly trained for such situations. “Their priority is to stay alive and avoid capture,” Jennifer Kavanagh, director of military analysis at think tank Defense Priorities, told the BBC. “Assuming they are physically fit and not so injured that they cannot move, they are trained to try to escape the ejection site as quickly as possible and hide so they are safe.” “They are also trained in survival techniques so they can go without food or water, or find resources on the local terrain, for as long as possible,” Kavanagh added. How elite US military teams conduct rescue operations: ‘It’s harrowing and incredibly dangerous’ Where and when was the jet shot down? Images show men in Iran firing at US military helicopters Iranian state media said on Friday that the country’s forces shot down an American jet over the country’s southern region. The exact location where the F-15 was shot down has not been confirmed, but two possible provinces were mentioned by Iranian state media: Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad, in addition to Khuzestan. Two crew members were on board. One of them was rescued in a previous operation, which would have included an A-10 Warthog aircraft struck over the Persian Gulf. A helicopter carrying the rescued crew member was hit by gunfire, injuring crew members on board, but managed to land safely, US media reported. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said nomadic tribes living in the country’s mountains shot at two Black Hawk helicopters that were part of the US rescue mission. BBC Verify confirmed a video from Friday showing what appears to be three armed individuals shooting toward at least two Black Hawk helicopters. Iran’s top joint military command attributed the shooting down of the two American warplanes to new Iranian air defense systems, according to Iranian state news agency IRNA. The Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad region is a mountainous province in the southwest, home to more than 700,000 people, including nomads. The region’s nomads are known to carry rifles to protect their herds and camps from wild animals and robbery in the remote highlands. The province of Khuzestan is a hub for oil and several other industries. It is home to more than 4.7 million people, with a diverse population including Arabs, Persians and other ethnic groups. What do we know about the downed jet? The F-15E is designed for air-to-ground and air-to-air missions. In Iran, it is very likely that it was used in defensive roles to shoot down Iranian drones and cruise missiles. In its air-to-ground attack role, the jet is capable of launching laser and GPS-guided precision munitions, as well as other bombs. The aircraft has two crew members: the pilot and a weapons systems officer in the rear seat. The weapons officer, known as “Wizzo”, is responsible for selecting targets and ensuring weapons are programmed for the appropriate attack. This two-crew system allows the workload to be shared, particularly in a congested environment where the pilot is trying to avoid threats. It is not known what specifically brought down this American jet. Ghoncheh Habibiazad, from the BBC Persian service, contributed

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