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<div class="gmail-inner-article-top"><h1 class="gmail-">Iran claims destruction of US aircraft following reported recovery of second F-15 airman</h1><p class="gmail-">The US and Iran have made conflicting claims surrounding the destruction of military aircraft involved in the rescue operation</p><div class="gmail-another-name"><p><a href="https://thecradle.co/authors/news-desk-9" style="color:rgb(164,4,4)">News Desk</a></p></div><div class="gmail-another-name" style="margin-top:16px"><p><span style="color:rgb(84,88,94)">APR 5, 2026 - </span><font size="1"><a href="https://thecradle.co/articles/iran-claims-destruction-of-us-aircraft-following-recovery-of-second-f-15-airman">https://thecradle.co/articles/iran-claims-destruction-of-us-aircraft-following-recovery-of-second-f-15-airman</a></font></p></div></div><div class="gmail-inner-article-img"><img src="https://thecradle-main.oss-eu-central-1.aliyuncs.com/public/articles/2bd1f626-30ef-11f1-b18c-00163e02c055.jpeg" alt="" width="477" height="269" style="margin-right: 0px;"><span>(Photo credit: Iranian state media)</span></div><div class="gmail-inner-article-content"><div class="gmail-row"><div class="gmail-col-md-8 gmail-col-sm-7"><div class="gmail-article-content"><span class="gmail-article-body"><p><span style="background-color:transparent">Iran </span><a href="https://tasnimnews.ir/fa/news/1405/01/16/3557223/%D8%A8%D8%A7%D8%B2%D8%AA%D8%A7%D8%A8-%D8%B1%D8%B3%D8%A7%D9%86%D9%87-%D8%A7%DB%8C-%D8%A8%DB%8C%D8%A7%D9%86%DB%8C%D9%87-%D8%B3%D9%BE%D8%A7%D9%87-%D8%AF%D8%B1%D8%A8%D8%A7%D8%B1%D9%87-%D8%B4%DA%A9%D8%B3%D8%AA-%D8%B9%D9%85%D9%84%DB%8C%D8%A7%D8%AA-%D9%86%D8%AC%D8%A7%D8%AA-%D8%AE%D9%84%D8%A8%D8%A7%D9%86-%D8%A2%D9%85%D8%B1%DB%8C%DA%A9%D8%A7%DB%8C%DB%8C"><span style="background-color:transparent">announced</span></a><span style="background-color:transparent">
on 5 April the destruction of multiple US aircraft, including two
military helicopters and two C-130 transport planes carrying US special
forces seeking to rescue a downed US fighter pilot.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">The
alleged rescue operation "ended in complete failure with the timely
presence of the Armed Forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran," a
statement issued by the spokesman for the Khatam Al-Anbiya Central
Headquarters said.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">The
statement said that US President Donald Trump was in a "state of panic"
and trying to hide the operation's failure, "through lies and
psychological warfare."</span></p><div class="gmail-twitter-tweet gmail-twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display:flex;max-width:550px;width:100%;margin-top:10px;margin-bottom:10px"></div> <p><span style="background-color:transparent">It
also added that the helicopters and transport planes were shot down in a
joint operation involving the Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC),
Army, Basij paramilitary forces, and police commandos.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">Iran </span><a href="https://www.turkiyetoday.com/region/wreckage-of-us-c-130s-and-mh-6-helicopter-shown-in-iranian-footage-3217509?s=3"><span style="background-color:transparent">released</span></a><span style="background-color:transparent">
images and video Sunday showing the charred wreckage of US military
aircraft destroyed at an abandoned airport south of Isfahan. US forces
had apparently used the airport as a makeshift base to launch the
operation to rescue a US pilot whose F-15 warplane was shot down on
Friday.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">Footage
showed the destruction of at least two C-130 transport planes and one
MH-6 Little Bird special operations helicopter. The C-130 is a specially
equipped plane used to carry out covert infiltrations and extract
troops from behind enemy lines. The MH-6 is a lightweight helicopter
used by elite commando units.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">Iran's
Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf posted an image from the
wreckage site on X with a pointed message: "If the United States gets
three more victories like this, it will be utterly ruined."</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">Saturday's
special forces operation was launched after Iranian forces shot down an
F-15E warplane on Friday. It was the first US fighter jet lost to enemy
fire in over 20 years.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">US
officials claimed both F-15 crew members were successfully rescued in
an operation behind enemy lines and that all US personnel had
successfully exited Iran.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">The
first was rescued shortly after the crash, US officials claimed, while
the second was allegedly rescued after hiding in the mountains for two
days from Iranian forces searching for him.</span></p><div class="gmail-twitter-tweet gmail-twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display:flex;max-width:550px;width:100%;margin-top:10px;margin-bottom:10px"></div> <p><span style="background-color:transparent">Trump claimed that the second service member, a colonel, "sustained injuries," but will be "just fine."</span></p><p>US Central Command (CENTCOM) has not issued a statement regarding the pilot's fate.</p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">CNN's national security analyst Alex Plitsas </span><a href="https://edition.cnn.com/2026/04/05/middleeast/operation-us-airman-iran-wwk-intl"><span style="background-color:transparent">said</span></a><span style="background-color:transparent"> that had the second crew member been captured, he would have become a "strategic bargaining chip" for Tehran.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">US officials cited by the <i>Wall Street Journal </i>and
other US outlets also claimed that two transport planes got \u201cstuck\u201d at
the remote base during the rescue operation. After they were
deliberately destroyed, three additional US aircraft were dispatched to
extract all personnel involved in the rescue operation.</span></p><p><a href="https://www.foxnews.com/live-news/second-us-fighter-jet-downed-by-strait-of-hormuz-as-search-for-f-15e-crew-member-in-iran-continues"><span style="background-color:transparent">According</span></a><span style="background-color:transparent"> to Fox News, at least one aircraft, possibly a C-130 Hercules, had become "stuck in the mud."</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">The
IRGC's public affairs office issued a statement accusing Trump of
fabricating a successful rescue to conceal "a heavy defeat."</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">"Trump the gambler, the God of the sands of Tabas is still here," the statement said.</span></p><div class="gmail-twitter-tweet gmail-twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display:flex;max-width:550px;width:100%;margin-top:10px;margin-bottom:10px"></div> <p><span style="background-color:transparent">"Tabas"
is a reference to the failed US operation ordered by US President Jimmy
Carter to rescue US embassy employees taken captive in Tehran shortly
after the 1979 Islamic Revolution toppled the Shah.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">In
that operation, eight US special forces were killed when two of their
helicopters collided in the air over the Iranian desert. The operation
was an embarrassment for Carter, contributing to his defeat by Ronald
Reagan in the 1980 presidential election.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">The
Reagan White House went on to broker the sale of Israeli weapons to
Iran for use in the war against Iraq. The US also sold weapons to Iraq
in a bid to prolong the war and weaken both countries. According to some
estimates, over a million Iraqis and Iranians were killed in the
eight-year war.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">This incident of the destroyed aircraft comes as Trump's deadline for Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz approaches.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">The US president claimed that "hell" will be unleashed if Iran does not open the strategic waterway by Monday.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">"Open
the F***in' Strait, you crazy bastards, or you'll be living in Hell -
JUST WATCH!" wrote the president, adding: \u201cPraise be to Allah.\u201d</span></p><div class="gmail-twitter-tweet gmail-twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display:flex;max-width:550px;width:100%;margin-top:10px;margin-bottom:10px"></div> <p><span style="background-color:transparent">US
and Israeli warplanes have been bombing Iran since 28 February.
According to the Pentagon, the US and Israel have struck over 12,300
targets. Iran has retaliated with multiple waves of drone and ballistic
missile strikes against Israel, as well as US bases and assets in the
Persian Gulf.</span></p></span></div></div></div></div>
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