Iran claims US rescue mission ‘completely failed’, American aircraft downed

CAIRO – 5 April 2026: Iran claimed that a US rescue operation in southern Isfahan ended in failure, alleging that multiple American military aircraft were destroyed during the mission.

In a statement on Sunday, the spokesperson for Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya joint military headquarters said the operation, reportedly aimed at evacuating a pilot from a downed aircraft, was thwarted by Iranian forces.

“The alleged US rescue operation, which had been planned as part of a deception and rapid extraction under the pretext of saving their downed pilot at an abandoned airfield south of Isfahan, ended in complete failure thanks to the timely presence of the Armed Forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran,” the spokesperson said.

He claimed that two US C-130 military transport planes and two Black Hawk helicopters were destroyed in the confrontation.

The statement framed the incident as part of what it described as a series of setbacks for the US military, while accusing Washington of attempting to mislead public opinion about developments on the ground.

The claims could not be independently verified.

Meanwhile, the United States announced on Sunday that it had rescued a second Air Force officer after his F-15 jet was shot down over southern Iran two days earlier.

“WE GOT HIM!” US President Donald Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.

He added that the pilot sustained injuries “but he will be just fine.”

The F-15 was downed on Friday. The pilot, who was rescued several hours after the incident, and a second officer ejected from the aircraft and were able to evade capture by Iranian forces in the mountains.

“This is the first time in military memory that two U.S. Pilots have been rescued, separately, deep in Enemy Territory,” Trump said.

He called the operation to rescue the second airman “miraculous,” noting that it involved the deployment of “dozens of aircraft, armed with the most lethal weapons in the World, to retrieve him.”