A US pilot may have been captured in Iran after the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) reportedly shot down F-35 and F-15 E fighter aircraft of the US, Iranian media reported on Friday. The claims could not be independently verified.
Tasnim news agency claimed a US pilot ejected over southwest Iran from an F-35 fighter jet that was hit by the IRGC Aerospace Force.
Meanwhile, Iran International reported that an F-15E had been downed, citing an expert's opinion that the debris matched the aircraft's design.
Iranian government-linked sources also said the pilot had been captured. The US Central Command, the Pentagon and White House have not yet responded to reports of their jets being shot down.
Do not mistreat the pilot: Iran forces
Iran’s state broadcaster IRIB said in a post on X that civilians had driven towards the crash site in private vehicles, adding that many people in southwestern Iran were attempting to capture the US pilot, while the armed forces urged the public not to mistreat him.
The developments follow after claims by Iran that a second US fifth-generation F-35 jet was struck and brought down over central Iran by an advanced air defence system operated by the IRGC. Local channels reported that the pilot had ejected from the aircraft while also announcing a reward for anyone who captured them alive.
State broadcaster Press TV, citing a spokesperson for Iran’s Khatam al Anbiya Headquarters, reported that the aircraft was downed by a newly deployed air defence system of the IRGC Aerospace Force.
'Americans tried to extract fighter jet pilot'
The report further added that there were indications that the US attempted to extract the ejected pilot from Iran's border, believing them to be alive, but Tehran's forces ended up capturing.
Armed tribesmen and villagers in Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad were also searching for US forces after reports of a rescue attempt, patrolling mountains and rural areas. IRGC-linked handles on X posted videos showing an American chopper and a C-130 Hercules flying low in Iranian territory during a rescue operation.
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