US rescues service member from mountain hideout under fire in Iran

By  SEUNG MIN KIM, MATTHEW LEE and SAMY MAGDYMonday April 6, 2026

A high-risk American rescue operation unfolded deep inside Iranian territory after a U.S. fighter jet was shot down, with one aviator pulled to safety first and a second service member recovered only after hiding for hours in rugged mountains as Tehran urged civilians to help capture him.

Behind the scenes, the CIA moved to muddy the waters before the second crew member was located, pushing out false information inside the Islamic Republic that the United States had already found him and was moving him out by land, according to a senior Trump administration official.

Even as President Donald Trump and other U.S. officials cast the mission in near-Hollywood terms, the recovery effort hit serious snags, including two Black Hawk helicopters taking fire and trouble with two transport aircraft that were later destroyed by the U.S. military.

“This is the first time in military memory that two U.S. Pilots have been rescued, separately, deep in Enemy Territory,” Trump wrote early Sunday on his Truth Social platform. “WE WILL NEVER LEAVE AN AMERICAN WARFIGHTER BEHIND!”

US officials stayed silent as the operation played out

In a series of social media posts, Trump said the weekend mission demanded complete silence from U.S. officials so the effort would not be compromised, even as he and senior administration members tracked the airman’s position closely.

The White House and Pentagon withheld public details about the downed fighter jet for more than 24 hours after the crash, especially regarding the first crew member rescued from the F-15E Strike Eagle — an extraction Trump later said took seven hours in broad daylight over Iran.

During that window, the United States and Iran were both trying to locate the second crew member, a weapons systems officer, whose whereabouts were unknown to either side.

According to the senior official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the information had not yet been made public, the CIA spread the word in Iran that U.S. forces had already found the missing aviator and were transporting him by ground.

That misdirection bought time for the agency to identify where the service member was hiding, the official said. He had taken cover in a mountain crevice.

Sen. Dave McCormick, a Pennsylvania Republican, said on “Fox News Sunday” that he was briefed by a senior administration official involved in the mission and was told the injured service member had climbed 7,000 feet (2,133 meters).

The CIA then relayed the coordinates to the Pentagon and the White House, where Trump ordered the rescue to proceed.

Iran urged the public to look for the ‘enemy pilot’

At the same time, an anchor on a channel affiliated with Iranian state television was calling on people in the mountainous southwest region where the jet went down to turn in any “enemy pilot” to police, while offering a reward for anyone who did.

Trump said the American aviator was being “hunted down” by foes who were “getting closer and closer by the hour.” He said U.S. forces kept constant watch on the service member’s location.

When the timing was right, Trump said, he ordered the military to dispatch dozens of heavily armed aircraft to retrieve the crew member, who he said was “seriously wounded” but expected to recover.

Iranian state media reported that airstrikes in southwestern Iran on Saturday killed at least three people and wounded others in the same area where the missing American crew member was believed to be.

US rescuers face obstacles with aircraft during the operation

The mission was complicated from the start once U.S. forces were operating behind enemy lines. Iran’s joint military command said it struck two U.S. Black Hawk helicopters involved in the operation.

A person familiar with the situation said the two helicopters were able to reach safe airspace, though it was not clear whether they landed or whether any crew members were hurt. The person spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive matters.

Later, according to a regional intelligence official briefed on the mission, the U.S. military had to bring in additional aircraft to finish recovering the second service member after a technical malfunction. The same official said the military destroyed two transport planes it was forced to abandon because of the problem.

Iranian state television broadcast video Sunday that it said showed debris from a U.S. aircraft downed by Iranian forces, along with an image of thick black smoke rising into the air. The broadcaster said Iran had shot down a transport plane and two helicopters involved in the rescue effort.

Iran’s joint military command said the destroyed aircraft included two C-130 military transport aircraft and two Black Hawk helicopters in Isfahan province, where the operation took place.

“The fact that we were able to pull off both of these operations, without a SINGLE American killed, or even wounded, just proves once again, that we have achieved overwhelming Air Dominance and Superiority over the Iranian skies,” Trump said on social media.

A second US military jet also was downed

Trump did not, however, mention that another U.S. military jet went down the same day as the F-15E.

Iranian state media reported Friday that a U.S. A-10 attack aircraft crashed after being hit by Iran’s defense forces.

A U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive military matter, confirmed that a second Air Force combat aircraft went down in the Middle East on Friday.

Another person familiar with the situation said a second American pilot was rescued, though no further details were available because of security concerns.

Neither source provided additional information, including whether the aircraft was the A-10.

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Kim and Lee reported from Washington, and Magdy from Cairo. Associated Press writers Lisa Mascaro and Konstantin Toropin in Washington, Farnoush Amiri in New York and Julia Frankel in Jerusalem contributed to this report.