Hunt for missing pilot after US fighter jet is shot down over Iran

To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web
browser that
supports HTML5
video

Up Next

The US military has launched a major search operation after a fighter jet was reportedly taken down in Iran.

Iran’s state-linked media has been taunting the Americans with images appearing to be from the wreckage of a US F-15 jet.

Footage appears to show the ejection seat from the Air Force jet, which Iran claims it shot down this morning.

The location of the two pilots is not currently known, but the US has reportedly sent in search and rescue aircraft.

Screengrabs showing a video purportedly showing a US search aircraft over Iran.
Footage shared on social media claims to show American search and rescue aircraft flying low deep in Iran (Picture: Clashreport)

While the site of the downing has not been disclosed, it is thought to be somewhere in the mountainous Kohkilouyeh and Boyer-Ahmad province in southwestern Iran.

Officials told the New York Times that teams are looking for the missing pilots before Iran could get to them.

The fighter jet is thought to have been taken down by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC).

Metro has contacted the US CENTCOM and Pentagon for a comment.

Iran’s state media has reportedly called for residents to search for the pilots for a reward, and target any search aircraft.

Donald Trump and the White House are yet to comment publicly on the incident.

Earlier, Trump issued fresh threats against Iran, saying the US military ‘hasn’t even started destroying what’s left in Iran.’

President Donald Trump arrives from the Blue Room to speak about the Iran war from the Cross Hall in the White House in Washington DC on Wednesday, April 1, 2026.
Trump said the US military ‘hasn’t even started destroying what’s left in Iran’ last night (Picture: Alex Brandon/UPI/Shutterstock)

He wrote in a Truth Social post on Thursday evening that Iran’s bridges and electric power plants will be ‘next.’

The POTUS boasted that the US can ‘easily open the Hormuz strait, take the oil and make a fortune.’

‘It would be a “gusher” for the world???’ he wrote.

Last month, six US Air Force soldiers survived after their F-15 fighter jet was shot down over Kuwait in a friendly fire mix-up amid Iranian air strikes.

They parachuted to safety after ejecting themselves and landed safely in the Kuwaiti desert, where locals realised what country they were from.

Got a story? Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk. Or you can submit your videos and pictures here.

For more stories like this, check our news page.

Follow Metro.co.uk on Twitter and Facebook for the latest news updates. You can now also get Metro.co.uk articles sent straight to your device. Sign up for our daily push alerts here.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *