Race to save US pilot shot down in Iran after Tehran offers ‘precious prize’ for their capture

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The hunt is still on for a US fighter jet pilot whose aircraft was downed by Iran as the country desperately fires at more helicopters and planes.

A two-seater F-15 plane went down over Iran yesterday, with only one of the servicemen inside rescued, NBC reports.

The White House is yet to make any official statement, but images are being shared of the wreck.

A ‘precious prize’ are being offered in Iran to find the missing pilot as Tehran strikes more aircraft across the Middle East.

The anchor on the channel in Iran’s Kohkilouyeh and Boyer-Ahmad province read the following announcement: ‘If you capture the enemy pilot or pilots alive and hand them over to the police, you will receive a precious prize.’

A second US plane – an A-10 Thunderbolt known as a Warthog – was downed over Kuwaiti airspace.

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03/04/2026 - IRAN - Image of an ejection seat in the sand in southern Iran. A search and rescue effort is under way for a downed US F-15 fighter jet in southern Iran, two sources confirmed to news outlets. It is not known how many crew members were on board. Images posted on social media showed a refuelling plane and two helicopters flying low over Khuzestan Province, consistent with a search and rescue mission. Iran's state media claimed Iranian forces shot down the plane. PICTURE: UNPIXS 03/04/2026
Image of an ejection seat in the sand in southern Iran
(Picture: IRGC/UNPIXS)
03/04/2026 - IRAN - A search and rescue effort is under way for a downed US F-15 fighter jet in southern Iran, two sources confirmed to news outlets. It is not known how many crew members were on board. Images posted on social media showed a refuelling plane and two helicopters flying low over Khuzestan Province, consistent with a search and rescue mission. Iran's state media claimed Iranian forces shot down the plane. PICTURE: UNPIXS 03/04/2026
A search and rescue effort is under way for a downed US F-15 fighter jet in southern Iran (Picture: PRESS TV/UNPIXS)

Iranian state media shared footage which appears to show the aircraft being blown out of the sky.

The pilot managed to eject before the aircraft crashed.

Iran has also hit two UH 60 Blackhawk helicopters involved in the search and rescue, with service members receiving minor injuries.

This marks the first time a US jet has been downed by enermy fire since the start of Operation Epic Fury.

It comes after Donald Trump said Iran had been ‘completely decimated’.

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The US president refused to discuss last night the search and rescue effort for the missing pilot in Iran.

When asked if it will affect any negotiations with Iran, he replied: ‘No, not at all. No it’s war. We’re in war.’

Pentagon data has revealed the number of US service members wounded in the Iranian war has risen to 365.

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