Two US helicopters were hit by Iranian fire on 3/4 while participating in a search and rescue operation for a fighter pilot whose F-15E jet was shot down in Iran. An unnamed US official confirmed to NBC News that all personnel on board the two helicopters were safe.
Earlier on 3/4, Iran's Mehr and Tasnim news agencies reported that a US Black Hawk helicopter "was attacked" during a pilot search. They also published images allegedly showing an aircraft smoking in the sky, though the time and location of these images were unclear.
The incident occurred during a search for one of the two pilots from an F-15E multirole fighter jet, which US officials confirmed to CBS News was shot down over Iran on 3/4. One pilot was rescued, and US forces are actively searching for the other.
Central Command (CENTCOM), the US military agency responsible for operations in the Middle East, has not commented on the information.
 |
Image allegedly showing a US helicopter hit while searching for a pilot in Iran on 3/4. Photo: Tasnim |
US President Donald Trump declined to discuss details regarding the ongoing search and rescue operation in Iran during a phone interview with NBC News on the same day. He expressed disappointment with US media coverage of the effort.
When asked if the recent events would affect negotiations with Iran, Trump responded, "absolutely not, this is war, America is in conflict."
A video circulating on social media showed three US aircraft moving at low altitude in central Iran, apparently searching for the downed pilot.
This marks the first time a US aircraft has been shot down over Iran since the conflict began on 28/2. The US military appears to have lost over 20 aircraft of various types during the conflict, including an E-3 Sentry early warning aircraft and an F-35A stealth fighter jet. Most of these losses occurred due to Iranian fire while the aircraft were parked at airfields.
Nguyen Tien (According to AP, AFP, Tasnim, Al Jazeera)
