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A U.S. pilot may have been captured by Iranian forces after a fighter jet was shot down over central Iran on Friday, according to Iranian media and statements from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
A correspondent from Tasnim News Agency in Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad Province reported that the pilot ejected after the aircraft was destroyed and landed inside Iranian territory.
"The fate of the plane’s crew was unclear, as American officials scrambled to mount a search and rescue operation before Iran could get to any survivors," officials who spoke to The New York Times (NYT) said.
"A U.S. fighter jet was shot down over Iran and a search and rescue operation was underway for any survivors," a U.S. official also told Reuters.
Axios also confirmed that Iran has shot down a U.S. fighter jet, per Iranian media and a source familiar with the incident, and a search and rescue effort is underway to locate the two crew.
"A search-and-rescue operation was underway for the crew of a U.S. jet fighter that went down over Iran, the first known loss of a jet inside the country since the start of the war," people familiar with the matter cited by The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) said.
Initial information indicated that U.S. forces attempted to locate and extract the pilot, but some sources suggested the pilot was likely captured by Iranian military units.
Investigations by Tasnim reporters in the provinces show that the Americans are using several Black Hawk helicopters, a Hercules 130, and reconnaissance drones to search for the fighter pilot.
Fighter pilots are typically equipped with GPS-linked systems that transmit their location after ejection. However, the area being searched suggests U.S. forces do not have the pilot’s exact coordinates and are relying on other methods to locate him.
Local Iranian television reported that authorities are offering a reward for anyone who captures the U.S. pilot alive, while police in Kohgiluyeh have called on residents to assist in locating and arresting the pilot of the downed aircraft.
The IRGC announced that it had shot down a second U.S. F-35 stealth fighter jet using what it described as a new advanced air defense system operated by its aerospace force. The statement said the aircraft was destroyed in the skies over central Iran and crashed after being hit.
According to the IRGC, the fighter jet belonged to the Lakenheath squadron and was completely destroyed upon impact. The group added that the severity of the explosion made it unlikely that the pilot survived.
However, separate reports citing local sources indicated the pilot may have ejected before the crash, leading to ongoing uncertainty about the pilot’s fate.
The Pentagon has not confirmed the IRGC’s claims, and independent analysts said debris from the incident could not be definitively identified.
While IRGC statements suggested the pilot was unlikely to have escaped due to the scale of the explosion, Tasnim’s correspondent reported indications that the pilot survived the ejection and landed inside Iranian territory.
The same report said U.S. forces believed the pilot could be alive and attempted a recovery operation near Iran’s borders. Other sources, however, said the pilot had likely been captured by Iranian forces.
The situation remains unclear, with conflicting accounts from Iranian sources regarding whether the pilot survived and was taken into custody.
The incident comes amid continued escalation following the large-scale military campaign launched by the U.S. and Israel against Iran on Feb. 28, which followed the assassination of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and several senior military commanders and civilians.
The campaign has involved extensive aerial strikes targeting military and civilian locations across Iran, resulting in casualties and infrastructure damage.
In response, Iranian armed forces have carried out retaliatory operations using missiles and drones targeting U.S. and Israeli positions in the occupied territories and regional bases.
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