Two US military aircraft were shot down in separate incidents during the war in Iran on April 3 – an F-15E Strike Eagle and an A-10 Thunderbolt II – with a search and rescue mission missing as Operation Epic Fury approaches its sixth week.
Summary
- Iran shot down a US F-15E Strike Eagle on April 3; one of the two workers was rescued, the other is missing
- An IA-10 Thunderbolt II sent during the rescue attempt was also hit by Iranian fire; the pilot was ejected and recovered
- These incidents directly contradict the US government’s recent claims of total air dominance over Iran, making it difficult to send the administration’s messages about the war’s progress.
US officials confirmed to CBS News that the F-15E Strike Eagle – a two-seater aircraft flown by a pilot and a weapons systems officer – was shot down by Iranian forces. One crew member was rescued by the US military following a combat search and rescue operation. A second crew member, a weapons systems officer, is still missing. Footage confirmed by CNN showed a rescue plane flying down the ground carrying out operations in Khuzestan province in central Iran.
The helicopter that took out the surviving pilot was hit by small arms fire during the operation, injuring the crew on board before it landed safely. An IA-10 Warthog sent as part of the search effort was hit by Iranian fire, forcing its pilot to eject over the Persian Gulf before recovering.
Iran’s state media posted claims of downing the plane and announced a reward for the capture of any “enemy pilot or pilots.” Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf publicly ridiculed the US search effort for X.
Direct Conflict
Controversy with the statements of President Trump, who said in his first speech two days earlier: “They have no anti-aircraft equipment. Their radar is 100% destroyed. We are unstoppable as a military.” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and other officials have repeatedly emphasized that the US has air power over Iran.
According to Axios, three F-15Es were previously lost to friendly fire during the conflict. The war has now killed 13 Americans and injured 365 service members. Israel has separately halted airstrikes in areas linked to the ongoing US rescue effort, according to an Israeli official who spoke on condition of anonymity to The Associated Press.
Economic Pressure
Iran’s response has increased along with the loss of aircraft. Tehran has imposed what amounts to a toll system on the Strait of Hormuz, a waterway through which about 20% of the world’s oil trade is transported. Missile and drone attacks hit oil, gas, and desalination facilities in the Persian Gulf on Friday. Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago Austan Goolsbee told CBS News that the Iran war poses a risk to inflation in a way that could prevent the Fed from cutting rates in 2026.
As analysts have warned in recent months, the rise in the Middle East has the effect of supply and inflation multiplying in all risk assets. Institutional capital flows have already shifted in response to the conflict, with major asset managers repositioning in both traditional and digital markets as the political environment grows more uncertain.
