After two U.S. military aircraft were shot down in separate incidents over Iran and the Persian Gulf, an elite unit is conducting a high-stakes search for a missing pilot inside Iranian territory.
The operation is being led by the Pararescuemen, or “PJs,” one of the U.S. military’s most elite special operations units, specialists in combat search-and-rescue (CSAR) behind enemy lines.
The first incident involved a U.S. fighter jet brought down over Iran, prompting a risky recovery mission. American forces secured the crash site for several hours before extracting a pilot, who was reported in fair condition.
Iranian state-linked media in Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad province urged civilians to report any “enemy pilot” and broadcast messages encouraging them to shoot those attempting to evade capture. Footage aired by the outlet showed fragments of wreckage loaded into a pickup truck, though the material could not be independently verified.
Tehran has placed a $60,000 bounty to capture the missing pilot, and the PJ’s are desperately trying to find the person.
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Hours later, a second U.S. aircraft was reportedly downed near the Strait of Hormuz. Iranian state media claimed its air defence systems had targeted an “enemy” aircraft operating in the southern Gulf.
The aircraft was initially identified as a Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II, the heavily armoured “Warthog.” U.S. officials later suggested it may instead have been an F-15E Strike Eagle.
Officials confirmed that one crew member from the second incident had been rescued, though it remains unclear whether both airmen survived.
The Sun reported, that security analyst Aaron MacLean, a Marine Corps veteran, said: “They are an extraordinary group of special operators.”
These missions are often carried out behind enemy lines, although they frequently collaborate with other special forces units. Operatives can drop into hostile areas from altitudes as high as 30,000 feet or as low as 800 feet, using large parachutes that measure 470 square feet—about twice the size of a standard parachute. This allows them to carry a significant amount of equipment.
In addition to their weapons, body armour, and personal rucksacks, they jump with an 80-pound parachute pack filled with a wide range of gear to help locate, medically treat if necessary, and evacuate their target. Their medical supplies even include blood packs in case they need to perform emergency transfusions, as reported by The Sun.
“Harrowing and massively dangerous is an understatement,” a former squadron commander told CBS News of the missions.
“This is what they train to do, all over the world. They are known as the Swiss Army knives of the Air Force.”
The American Air Force website states: “Pararescue is the nation’s force of choice to execute the most perilous, demanding, and extreme rescue missions anytime, anywhere across the globe.
“Whether shot down or isolated behind enemy lines; surrounded, engaged, wounded, or captured by the enemy; PJs will do whatever required to deny the enemy a victory and bring our warriors home to fight another day.
“Leave no Airman, Marine, Soldier, or Sailor behind is our nation’s supreme promise and responsibility to our brave war fighters.
“The Air Force holds true to this moral imperative. The PJs are the elite ground forces that provide our nation with the capability to execute this noble responsibility.”
Former US Marine Jonathan Hackett told the BBC: “They’re trying to work backwards from the last point they knew that person was, and fan out based on the speed that person could move under different circumstances in this really difficult terrain.”
