1 crew member from US jet downed in Iran rescued
What's the story
United States special forces have rescued a pilot from the fighter jet that was shot down over Iran, sources told CNN. The status of the second crew member was not immediately known. The aircraft was identified as an F-15E fighter jet by The New York Times and Wall Street Journal. The F15-E has two crew members: the pilot in the front seat and the Weapons Systems Officer (WSO) in the back seat.
Public appeal
Iranian officials offer rewards for capturing crew members
Iranian media reported that its forces have also launched a search operation after shooting down the US fighter jet with an air defense system over southwestern Iran. Iranian officials have asked civilians to help find survivors from the downed jet. According to the semi-official Iranian news agency ISNA, the governor of Iran's Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad province said whoever captured the crew "would be specially commended."
White House
President Trump briefed
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said President Donald Trump had been briefed on the matter. Israel claimed it has put off some of its planned strikes in Iran so that they don't get in the way of the search and rescue efforts. Iranian media was the first to report that a jet had been shot down, releasing photos of what it claimed to be the wreckage of the jet downed by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
3rd
1st time US jet shot down
This is the first time a US jet has been shot down by enemy fire since the war began. Iran previously claimed to have hit American military jets, but the US did not confirm any such incidents. US Central Command said an F-35 fighter jet made an emergency landing on March 19, but did not clarify whether it was the result of an Iranian strike. Near the beginning of the war, Kuwait accidentally shot down three American fighter jets.