JERUSALEM (VINnews) — In a dramatic development in Iran, a US fighter jet, an F-15E Strike Eagle, was downed on Friday in Iranian territory. The incident continued to play out on Saturday as US commandos were allegedly operating in Iran to locate the two downed crew members. One of the crew has already been rescued, but the second remains missing, and the United States is conducting an intensive effort to locate him before he falls into Iranian hands.

According to reports, the fighter jet was hit during operations over Iran, and both crew members ejected. Shortly afterward, U.S. forces managed to rescue one of them, while the search for the second continues under difficult terrain conditions and ongoing threat.

According to Reuters, Iranian forces are also simultaneously searching for the missing crew member, turning the situation into a highly sensitive operational race.

On the Iranian side, there are efforts to leverage the incident in the information domain as well. According to AP, Iranian authorities have called on the public to assist in locating the “enemy pilot.” The search is focused in southwestern Iran, in the Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad province. The report states that alongside security forces, local civilians are also participating, reflecting Tehran’s understanding that capturing a live American crew member could become a major propaganda achievement.

The most dramatic detail published so far is a report by The Daily Telegraph, according to which U.S. special forces are operating inside Iranian territory in an attempt to locate the missing crew member. If accurate, this would be one of the most unusual developments since the beginning of the conflict, as it indicates direct U.S. ground operations deep inside enemy territory, and not just aerial efforts from a distance.

According to Reuters and AP, during the rescue attempts, two American Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters were also hit by Iranian fire but managed to exit the area. This detail highlights how dangerous the rescue operation is, and how any delay increases the risk of further escalation between Washington and Tehran.

In the West, there is close monitoring of the fate of the missing crew member, not only due to the operational aspect, but also because of the political and symbolic implications. An American captive in Iranian hands would represent a dramatic propaganda victory for the regime and could place heavy pressure on the Trump administration to further expand military action.

In another incident on Friday evening, an American fighter aircraft, an Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II, known by its nickname “Warthog”, crashed into the waters of the Persian Gulf near the strategic Strait of Hormuz. The pilot was safely rescued by the US, but there are conflicting versions about the cause of the accident, with Iran claiming to have downed the airplane while the US is currently claiming it was an operational accident.