2 min readNew DelhiUpdated: Apr 6, 2026 10:45 PM IST
US President Donald Trump said that approximately 200 men were deployed to pick up the US Air Force officer who was stranded in Iran after his fighter jet was struck down on Friday during a Operation Epic Fury mission.
Trump acknowledges ‘lucky shot’
Earlier on Monday, on the sidelines of the White House Easter Egg Roll, Trump said Iran was able to down a US aircraft with a “lucky shot” during the operation. He also said “we have some helicopters with a lot of bullet holes in them right now probably”.
The president also added that the regime had a “lucky shot” when it downed a US F-15 fighter jet on Friday, but said the rescue of the airman who sustained injuries was “incredible.”
USAF officer rescue operation
On Sunday, Donald Trump announced that the American military conducted a major operation to rescue a US Air Force officer who was stranded in Iran after his fighter jet was struck down on Friday during a mission.
While the pilot of the F-15E Strike Eagle jet was immediately rescued, the Colonel-ranked weapons systems officer went missing.
The extraction took place alongside the rescue of a jet pilot on Saturday. Trump said the two military personnel were rescued separately, from deep within Iranian territory.
According to an NYT report, hundreds of special forces troops, dozens of US warplanes, and helicopters were mobilised during the rescue mission of the Colonel.
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Trump wrote on Truth Social: “The fact that we were able to pull off both of these operations, without a SINGLE American killed, or even wounded, just proves once again, that we have achieved overwhelming Air Dominance and Superiority over the Iranian skies.”
According to an initial NYT, during the rescue of the weapons officer, two US transport planes, meant to carry the personnel to safety, got stuck at a remote base, prompting the personnel to blow the aircraft up.
However, later in the day, the Unified Command of the Iranian Armed Forces said that two C-130 planes and two Blackhawk helicopters were downed south of Isfahan during the rescue operation.
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