WASHINGTON: Two US military planes were shot down in separate incidents on Friday, and while one crew member was rescued in Iran, the whereabouts of at least one other was unknown — marking a dramatic escalation since the war began nearly five weeks ago.
The incident showed the risks still faced by US and Israeli aircraft over Iran despite assertions by US President Donald Trump and his Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth that their forces had total control of the skies.
It was the first time US aircraft had been downed in the conflict and came just two days after Trump said in a national address that the US has “beaten and completely decimated Iran” and was “going to finish the job, and we’re going to finish it very fast.”
No statement had been given by US officials, but an NBC report quoted Trump as saying Friday that the downing of an American military jet would not affect negotiations over ending the month-old conflict with Iran.
Iranian media said residents were shooting at US helicopters on a search-and-rescue mission after the downing of what US sources said was a two-seat F-15E jet.
