American C-130 and Blackhawks downed in hunt for US pilot, Iran claims
Tehran claims to have destroyed several US aircraft during the daring mission to recover a downed pilot stranded in Iran.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said on Sunday that several “flying objects” were destroyed during the rescue mission, according to the Tasnim news agency.
The spokesperson of Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, the unified command of the Iranian armed forces, said the downed aircraft included a C-130 and two Black Hawk helicopters.
Earlier on Sunday, Iran's army also said they had downed an Israeli drone in the same province.
Donald Trump said overnight that the US military had sent “dozens of aircraft, armed with the most lethal weapons in the World” to find an airman stuck behind enemy lines after Iran downed his F-15E fighter jet.
Reuters reported on Friday that two Black Hawk helicopters involved in the search were hit by Iranian fire but escaped from Iranian airspace. In a separate incident, a pilot ejected from an A-10 Warthog fighter aircraft after it was hit over Kuwait and crashed, officials said.