Iranian state and semi-official outlets reported that Iran shot down a U.S. A-10 aircraft near the Strait of Hormuz, while U.S. sources say one crew member from a separate U.S. fighter jet brought down over Iran has been recovered and is in U.S. custody receiving medical treatment. The Iranian claim about the A-10 could not be independently verified by outside sources, and details remain contested.
Al Jazeera, citing the Tasnim news agency, reported Iran’s military said the A-10 was hit “in waters south of and around the strategic waterway,” according to the army public relations team. Outside verification of the strike was not available.
Al Jazeera noted that the A-10 is a U.S. ground-attack aircraft built for close air support, particularly against armoured vehicles and ground forces. The outlet framed the claim against the backdrop of ongoing tensions around the strategic maritime corridor.
In a separate development, CNN, citing three sources familiar with the matter, reported that American forces recovered one crew member from a U.S. fighter jet that had been downed over Iran. Two sources told CNN the rescued individual is alive, “in U.S. custody and receiving medical treatment.”
The fate of the second crew member remained unclear as search-and-rescue operations continued, CNN reported. A U.S. source identified the downed aircraft as an F-15E Strike Eagle, a dual-role fighter that performs both air-to-air and air-to-ground missions and is typically crewed by a pilot and a weapon systems officer.
Military officials and multiple outlets, including The Wall Street Journal, reported that the jet was shot down. CNN said its analysis of images circulated by Iranian media matched F-15 wreckage, and cited Iranian state broadcaster IRIB as first reporting the jet had been targeted.
IRIB posted a map on X (formerly Twitter) circling the area where searches for the two pilots have been concentrated. CNN geolocated footage from a bridge over the Karoon River in Khuzestan Province, roughly 470 km south of Tehran, showing low-flying aircraft and helicopters in a formation consistent with air-to-air refuelling operations.
U.S. outlet Axios also reported that a rescue mission was underway. Iranian media circulated photographs of debris, including a tail fin, that appeared to identify the jet as belonging to the 494th Fighter Squadron — the “LN” tail code used at RAF Lakenheath in the U.K.
The U.S. military and the White House had not issued an official comment on the pilots’ status or the circumstances of the crashes at the time of the reports. IRIB said the “fate of the pilots is currently unclear” as searches and assessments continue on the ground.
Original Source: https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/us-a-10-warthog-fighter-jet-crashes-near-strait-of-hormuz-pilot-rescued-report-11308682#publisher=newsstand
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Publish Date: 2026-04-04 05:07:00
