One crew member has reportedly been rescued from US warplane downed over Iran

Washington DC - US forces have rescued one member of the crew of the US warplane taken down over Iran, major US media outlets reported Friday after Iranian media aired footage of aircraft wreckage.

In this US Air Force handout photo released by US Central Command public affairs, a US Air Force F-22 Raptor aircraft takes flight in the US Central Command area of responsibility in support of Operation Epic Fury on March 20, 2026.  © US AIRFORCE / AFP

Axios and CBS News, citing unidentified sources, reported that one of the two crew on the plane had already been rescued by US special forces but that the search was ongoing for the second crew member.

According to The New York Times and Wall Street Journal, the plane was an F-15E fighter, which is crewed by a pilot and a weapons-systems officer in the back seat.

CNN also said that analysis of what Iranian media said were photos of the wreckage showed an F-15, rather than an F-35 stealth fighter, as claimed in some Iranian reports.

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American media reported that President Donald Trump had been briefed on the situation.

However, there was no immediate on-the-record response from the White House or Pentagon to requests for comment.

US media also reported that a search-and-rescue operation was underway by specialized US forces, following what would be the first known loss of a jet inside Iran since Trump ordered the war.

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Photos and video circulating on social media and Iranian news outlets were cited by major US media outlets as showing US helicopters and other aircraft flying at low altitude over the presumed site of the downed fighter jet.

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