Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) today announced it used an "advanced naval air defense system" to shoot down a US F-35 fighter jet over the central part of the country. The IRGC added that the aircraft belonged to a squadron stationed at Lakenheath Air Base in the UK, emphasizing that it disintegrated, making it impossible to determine the pilot's fate.

On the same day, Iran's Tasnim news agency released images of debris believed to be from the downed US fighter jet. These included a section of the main wingtip with night navigation lights and a vertical tail fin bearing the insignia of the US Air Forces in Europe (USAFE).

Debris believed to be from a US fighter jet downed by Iran on 3/4. Photo: Tasnim

David Cenciotti, editor-in-chief of military aviation news site Aviationist, stated that these fragments are actually from a heavy F-15E fighter jet, not an F-35 stealth fighter. He explained, "The red stripe on the vertical tail fin is the identification mark of the 494th Fighter Squadron, an F-15E unit stationed at Lakenheath Air Base in the UK that has deployed to Jordan for operations against Iran."

Other images show a digital electronic warfare system (DEWS) pod, typically located at the tail end of F-15E fighter jets, as well as a deep crater believed to be where the aircraft crashed.

Debris believed to be from an F-15E's DEWS pod in photos released by Iran today. Photo: PressTV

Cenciotti pointed out that there were no signs of these images being manipulated or AI-generated. He also dismissed the idea that this was the crash site of a US F-15E mistakenly shot down by Kuwait earlier in March, as the terrain in the photos did not match any area in Kuwait.

The IRGC previously claimed to have shot down a US fighter over Qeshm Island in southern Iran, accompanied by a video from an infrared sensor tracking an aircraft continuously maneuvering and deploying flares, but without showing the aircraft being hit or crashing.

Cenciotti suggested this appeared to be an F-15 fighter, but it was unclear if it was related to the released debris.

US Central Command (CENTCOM), the agency responsible for US military operations in the Middle East, has not commented on the images of the debris but affirmed that "all US combat aircraft have been accounted for". If confirmed, this would be the first US manned aircraft shot down over Iranian airspace since the conflict began.

Location believed to be where a US fighter jet crashed after being shot down in Iran on 3/4. Photo: PressTV

CENTCOM on 19/3 announced that a US F-35A stealth fighter had to make an emergency landing after conducting a combat mission over Iranian airspace, but did not specify the cause. The IRGC subsequently released an infrared sensor video tracking the F-35A before an air defense missile exploded at close range, damaging it. US Air & Space Forces magazine on 22/3, citing informed sources, reported that the incident severely damaged the aircraft, making it unlikely to return to service in the near future. The pilot was also injured by shrapnel.

Pham Giang (According to Aviationist, Tasnim)