The White House said the president was briefed as search-and-rescue efforts continue, though no formal U.S. confirmation of a downed jet has been issued.
Search-and-rescue efforts were underway in southern Iran on April 3 after an American fighter jet was shot down over Iranian airspace, with one crew member rescued and another still missing, senior Israeli security officials confirmed to Epoch Magazine Israel.
According to the Israeli officials, the United States dispatched search teams to the crash area, and so far, the teams have succeeded in rescuing one crew member, with the search for the second ongoing.
President Donald Trump has been briefed on the downing of the jet, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told CNN.
It comes after Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claimed on April 3 that its forces shot down a U.S. fighter jet over Iranian territory, with state-affiliated media reporting that crew members may have ejected and landed inside the country.
The semi-official Tasnim News Agency, citing an IRGC statement, said the aircraft was an F-35 and published images it said showed parts of the wreckage. The outlet added that the pilot’s fate remains unknown and claimed U.S. forces were seen conducting a search operation in the area using Black Hawk helicopters and a C-130 Hercules aircraft.
The type of aircraft remains unconfirmed, with some reports pointing to an F-15 rather than an F-35 as claimed by the IRGC. The F-35 is flown by a single pilot, whereas F-15 variants such as the Strike Eagle carry two crew members: a pilot and weapons officer.
Imagery Analysis Points to F-15 Variant
William Goodhind, a forensic imagery analyst with Contested Ground, said images of the aircraft’s tail fin circulating on social media are consistent with an F-15E Strike Eagle, a two-seat variant.
The assessment aligns with reports that two crew members were aboard the aircraft, a configuration that would be inconsistent with the single-seat F-35 cited by the IRGC.
Local television in the area where the aircraft crashed has called on tribesmen and members of a local militia to target U.S. personnel if spotted, according to the state-run Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting.
Separately, the governor of Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad province said anyone who captured or killed the crew “would be specially commended,” Iran’s semi-official ISNA news agency reported.
The IRGC claimed the downed aircraft was deployed from RAF Lakenheath, home to the 48th Fighter Wing of U.S. Air Forces in Europe.
U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) has not issued any public statements regarding the downing.
In previous similar Iranian claims made during the conflict, CENTCOM has denied Tehran’s assertions of downed U.S. aircraft, saying all planes were accounted for.
The Epoch Times has reached out to CENTCOM and the White House with requests for comment and additional information.
Escalation Risks Rise as Deadline Nears
The incident comes amid mounting tensions as Trump’s ultimatum for Iran to agree to a peace deal approaches an April 6 deadline, with talks showing little sign of progress.
Senior Israeli officials told Epoch Magazine Israel that indirect communications between Washington and Tehran— conducted through Pakistan’s army chief—have so far failed to yield a breakthrough. If no agreement is reached, Trump may order a significant escalation in military operations, according to those sources.
Trump has intensified his warnings in recent days, threatening to expand strikes on Iran’s critical infrastructure, including bridges and power facilities.
“Our Military … hasn’t even started destroying what’s left in Iran. Bridges next, then Electric Power Plants!” Trump wrote in an April 3 post on Truth Social.
The warning followed a U.S. strike on a major bridge near Tehran, identified by a U.S. official as the B1 Bridge linking the capital to Karaj, a key route believed to support Iran’s missile and drone supply chains.
Trump later shared footage of the strike, signaling further attacks could follow if Tehran does not agree to a deal.
“The biggest bridge in Iran comes tumbling down, never to be used again—Much more to follow!” he wrote. “It is time for Iran to make a deal before it is too late.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on April 3 that Israeli operations are being conducted in close coordination with Washington and have already significantly degraded Iran’s industrial capacity.
“In full coordination between myself and President Trump, between the IDF and the United States Army, we will continue to crush Iran. This regime is weaker than ever,” Netanyahu said in a statement, adding that recent strikes had destroyed a substantial portion of Iran’s steel production capacity, limiting the IRGC’s ability to finance and manufacture weapons.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi condemned the strikes as attacks on civilian infrastructure and dismissed their effectiveness.
“Every bridge and building will be built back stronger,” Araghchi wrote in an April 2 post on X.
“What will never recover: damage to America’s standing,” he said.
Iranian state media reported civilian casualties from recent strikes, while the World Health Organization said April 2 that multiple medical facilities had been damaged amid attacks across the country, including a medical research facility and a pharmaceutical company.
So far, 13 U.S. military service members have been killed in the conflict and more than 300 wounded, according to CENTCOM. No U.S. troops have been reported captured by Iran.
By Tom Ozimek
