A Heroic Rescue Amidst High-Stakes Operations
A brave F-15 airman was rescued during an audacious mission involving hundreds of SEAL Team 6 commandos and a clever deception campaign against the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) as he fought for his life atop a 7,000-foot ridge.
The unidentified airman, who President Donald Trump has described as a ‘brave warrior,’ got trapped behind enemy lines after the fighter jet was shot down over a remote area of Iran on Friday. A pilot who was with him safely ejected the aircraft and was rescued by two military helicopters that same day, but the airman remained missing.
He managed to evade Iranians for nearly two days by climbing the tall, narrow mountain while American MQ-9 Reaper drones hovered overhead, shooting missiles at Iranian forces as they got too close to him. The airman, a weapons system officer, only had a handgun to protect himself and was left ‘seriously injured’ after being thrown out of the F-15.
Following the crash, Iranian military forces put a $60,000 bounty on the airman’s head, prompting Iranian militants to hunt for him in the mountains. CIA agents then planted fake intel that the airman had already been rescued and driven out of Iran, according to reports.
Meanwhile, US military officials had received ‘beeping information’ about the airman’s location, but a radio message threw them off, making them think Iranians were ‘sending false signals’ and trying to draw American forces into a trap, Trump told Axios.
According to the president, after he was ejected from the plane, the airman said: ‘Power be to God,’ but it was later confirmed by a US defense official that the exact phrase was: ‘God is good.’ ‘What he said on the radio sounded like something a Muslim would say,’ Trump continued, adding that those who know the officer said he is a religious person.
The airman was referred to as a ‘valuable package’ that they were trying to move ‘out of the country through a maritime exfil,’ a senior US official told Fox News chief foreign correspondent Trey Yingst. ‘This was meant to draw Iranians away from the area where the US crew member was located. The deception campaign worked,’ the official added.
The agency ultimately discovered where the airman was hiding out and passed the vital information along to the Pentagon, sparking his heroic rescue. The daring Saturday night rescue mission took commandos, or elite trained soldiers, into the heart of enemy territory.
After a firefight broke out between US troops and local militias, he and the commandos were brought to safety, per the Times. However, two transport planes and one helicopter became stuck in the mud and were unable to take off, leaving more military personnel stranded behind enemy lines as Basij fighters closed in on their botched rescue site.
Three more transport planes were flown in to evacuate the downed airman and the rescue party, as they were evacuated under gunfire from the advancing Iranians. Miraculously, US forces escaped, and a rescue plane flew the injured airman to Kuwait for medical treatment. There were no US casualties.
As they left, US troops were forced to ‘blow up’ their own stricken planes and helicopters, to prevent them falling into the hands of the Iranian military.
It was a move likely to have cost millions of dollars to the US military and showed the urgency of the US forces to evacuate under extreme pressure.
On Saturday evening, Trump confirmed the airman was rescued safely, posting to Truth Social: ‘WE GOT HIM! My fellow Americans, over the past several hours, the United States Military pulled off one of the most daring Search and Rescue Operations in U.S. History, for one of our incredible Crew Member Officers, who also happens to be a highly respected Colonel, and who I am thrilled to let you know is now SAFE and SOUND!’
‘This brave Warrior was behind enemy lines in the treacherous mountains of Iran, being hunted down by our enemies, who were getting closer and closer by the hour, but was never truly alone because his Commander in Chief, Secretary of War, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and fellow Warfighters were monitoring his location 24 hours a day, and diligently planning for his rescue.’
Trump touted the operation further, calling it ‘one of the most daring Search and Rescue Operations in U.S. History.’ The president posted about the airman again on Sunday, praising the successful mission and announcing he will be holding a news conference about the rescue on Monday at 1pm alongside members of the US military in the Oval Office. He added: ‘Bless our great MILITARY WARRIORS!’
Right after, Trump shared a foul-mouthed post threatening Iran as the war rages on.
‘Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran,’ he wrote. ‘There will be nothing like it!!! Open the Fin’ Strait, you crazy b**ds, or you’ll be living in Hell – JUST WATCH! Praise be to Allah. President DONALD J. TRUMP.’
The president’s latest threat comes just days after US-Israeli air strikes destroyed Iran’s tallest bridge, killing eight people. The B1 bridge, which links Iran’s capital with the western city of Karaj, was targeted in two waves of strikes on Thursday after Trump said he would bomb Tehran ‘back to the Stone Age.’ The second attack on the 136-metre structure took place while rescue forces were at the scene helping at least 95 injured people, Iranian state media claimed.
Now, Trump said Iran’s power plants will be bombed next if the Strait of Hormuz is not reopened.
The narrow and vital waterway that is used as a high-volume shipping route has been closed since the war broke out on February 28, with Iran vowing to block ‘enemy’ ships from getting through ever since.
Trump was spotted for the first time in days heading back into the White House after visiting Trump National Golf Club on Sunday. Before that, he was holed up in the White House, ‘working nonstop’ during the holiday weekend as tensions continue to escalate, White House communications director Steven Cheung said in a X post on Saturday. On Wednesday when he visited the Supreme Court as it heard a birthright citizenship case. Later that night, he delivered an address to the nation on the war with Iran.
How the Daring Extraction Unfolded
Friday morning, April 3. Near the village of Talkhuncheh, Isfahan Province, Iran.
A F-15 E Strike Eagle is apparently hit by Iranian fire. Tehran said it is deploying new anti-aircraft weapons and there are suspicions an advanced passive infrared detection system was used to guide a missile. Both pilot and weapons systems officer eject.
Weapons systems officer, a lieutenant colonel, is injured during the ejection and becomes separated from the pilot. US special forces HH-60W Jolly Green 2 helicopters fly in and come under fire from Iranians. They rescue the pilot but are unable to reach the other crewman. Two helicopters are hit and the crew are injured but they are able to escape Iranian airspace. An A-10 Warthog was also hit by fire and later crashed in the Strait of Hormuz. An MC-130J refuelling aircraft is filmed fuelling two helicopters over the crash site. Iranians are also filmed firing at one rescue helicopter.
Hours 1-12
The Weapons Systems Officer starts hiking away from the wreck site and evades detection by Iranian Forces. Armed with just a hand gun and injured but mobile, the senior officer headed for higher ground. The experienced colonel used his SERE training (Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape), an escape doctrine drilled into every American combat aircrew. He activated his emergency beacon and lay low, waiting for an unlikely rescue. Although he could use his emergency beacon to contact rescuers, it also risked giving his location away to the enemy.
Hours 12-24
American forces hunt for the officer, while he hiked at least 20 kilometres and climbed 7,000 feet up a mountain. He is eventually located by the CIA, although it is unclear how. The CIA starts a deception operation to convince Iranians that the officer has already been rescued. MQ-9 Reaper Drones watch over the officer and attack any Iranians who get within 3 kilometres of his location. Two drones were shot down and they attacked multiple Iran Revolutionary Guard Corps search parties. Iranian media offers a $60,000 reward for the capture of the officer.
Saturday morning
US special forces launch a second rescue mission with commandos from the elite SEAL Team 6, also known as DEVGRU and land at a desert airstrip near the town of Mahyar. The Navy Seals fly in four MH-6 Little Birds and rescue the officer from the mountain top, before returning to the desert airstrip.
Saturday afternoon
The two C-130 aircraft got stuck in the dirt at the desert landing strip, forcing the US to deploy three new Dash-8 rescue aircrafts. The commandos blow up the two stuck aircraft and at least one helicopter, to deny them to the enemy, before making their escape.
