Developing Story — Search and Rescue Ongoing
A US F-15E Strike Eagle was shot down over western Iran on April 3, 2026. The pilot has been rescued, but the weapons systems officer remains missing. A second US aircraft — an A-10 Warthog — was also hit during the rescue operation, with its pilot ejecting over the Persian Gulf, according to BBC and Al Jazeera.
An American F-15E Strike Eagle fighter jet was shot down over western Iran on Thursday, April 3, marking the first confirmed downing of a US aircraft by Iranian forces since the war began on February 28, according to reports from BBC and Al Jazeera.
The incident triggered a dangerous search and rescue operation that came under sustained fire, resulting in a second US aircraft being hit and multiple casualties among rescue personnel, BBC reported.
The Downing
Iran’s IRGC-affiliated Tasnim News Agency was the first to report the downing, BBC said. The F-15E — a two-seat multirole strike fighter valued at approximately $100 million — went down over the western Iranian province of Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad.
The aircraft carries a two-person crew: a pilot and a weapons systems officer (WSO). According to BBC, the pilot was successfully extracted by a rescue helicopter, but the search for the WSO continues as of Thursday evening.
The governor of Kohgiluyeh province stated that capturing the downed crew members “alive” was a priority, according to BBC. Iranian authorities offered a reward of 10 billion tomans — roughly £50,000 — for anyone who could locate the “intruder,” BBC reported.
Rescue Mission Under Fire
The search and rescue (SAR) mission itself became a combat engagement, according to BBC:
- A rescue helicopter dispatched to retrieve the downed crew came under fire, wounding several crew members on board.
- An A-10 Thunderbolt II — commonly known as the Warthog — providing close air support for the rescue was also hit. The pilot ejected safely over the Persian Gulf, BBC reported.
Iran claimed it had downed two US aircraft: the F-15E over western Iran and the A-10 near the Strait of Hormuz, Al Jazeera reported. The Pentagon has not confirmed the loss of the A-10 as a shoot-down.
Aircraft Involved — Status Summary
- F-15E Strike Eagle — Shot down over western Iran. Pilot rescued. Weapons systems officer missing, search ongoing.
- A-10 Thunderbolt II (Warthog) — Hit during rescue operation near Persian Gulf. Pilot ejected. Status of aircraft unknown.
- Rescue Helicopter (type unspecified) — Came under fire during extraction. Crew members wounded. Returned to base.
Iranian Response
The downing was met with celebration among Iranian state media and officials, BBC reported. The IRGC-affiliated Tasnim agency published the news almost immediately, and Iranian social media carried widespread commentary about the incident.
The governor of Kohgiluyeh province framed the search for surviving crew members as both a military and public affair, with the reward announcement broadcast through local media, according to BBC.
Iran denied any ongoing contact or negotiations with the United States, contradicting Trump’s references to potential diplomatic engagement, Al Jazeera reported.
Israeli Pause
CNN and Israel’s Channel 12 reported that Israel held off on planned strikes in the area where the search and rescue operation was taking place, according to BBC. The pause appeared to be a coordination measure to avoid interfering with US recovery efforts rather than a broader operational shift.
Diplomatic Implications
The shoot-down came at a sensitive moment. According to the Wall Street Journal, ceasefire efforts between the US and Iran had already hit a dead end before Thursday’s incident, BBC reported.
Trump told reporters the downing would not affect any ongoing diplomatic processes, while the White House confirmed the president had been briefed on the situation, Al Jazeera reported.
Just one day earlier, on April 2, Trump had delivered a primetime address in which he stated that US objectives in Iran were “nearing completion” and vowed to strike the country “extremely hard” over the next two to three weeks, according to BBC.
On Wednesday, Trump had also claimed that Iran’s drone and missile capabilities had been “decimated” by the campaign — a statement now complicated by Iran’s ability to down a frontline US fighter, BBC noted.
Context — Previous Aircraft Losses
While this is the first US aircraft shot down by Iranian forces, it is not the first American jet lost in the conflict. In early March, three US aircraft were downed in a friendly fire incident involving Kuwaiti forces, BBC reported.
The Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) reported that 1,606 civilians, including 244 children, have been killed in Iran since the start of the war on February 28, according to BBC.
Did You Know?
- The F-15 has one of the most impressive air combat records in history: variants of the aircraft went undefeated in aerial combat for decades before this conflict, with over 100 confirmed air-to-air victories across multiple operators worldwide.
- Combat search and rescue (CSAR) is among the most dangerous mission types in modern warfare. During the 1991 Gulf War, multiple SAR missions to recover downed pilots came under fire, with some rescue aircraft themselves being shot down.
- The A-10 Thunderbolt II — designed in the 1970s specifically for close air support — is built around a 30mm GAU-8 Avenger cannon and is famous for its ability to survive significant battle damage. The aircraft has a titanium “bathtub” surrounding the cockpit to protect the pilot from ground fire.
- The last time a US fighter jet was shot down by an adversary nation’s air defenses in a major conflict was during the 1999 NATO bombing of Yugoslavia, when a Serbian SAM battery downed an F-117 Nighthawk stealth fighter.
This is a developing story. WarEcho will update this article as new information becomes available. Sources: BBC, Al Jazeera, CNN, Wall Street Journal, Tasnim News Agency, HRANA.