A US A-10 Thunderbolt II ground-attack aircraft was shot down by Iranian forces over the Persian Gulf on Friday, April 3, marking a major escalation in the regional conflict, CNN reported.
The pilot managed to steer the aircraft out of Iranian airspace before ejecting and was subsequently rescued by US special forces, according to an unnamed US official. Tehran claimed its air defense units hit the plane near the Strait of Hormuz, causing it to crash into the Gulf.
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The loss of the A-10 occurred on the same day that an American F-15 fighter jet was downed inside Iran – the first such loss to enemy fire since the start of the war.
While US special forces successfully rescued one of the F-15’s two crew members, the second remains missing, prompting a high-risk search and rescue mission deep inside hostile territory.
The military situation remains volatile following the outbreak of the conflict more than a month ago, triggered by US-Israeli strikes that killed Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. The war has already roiled the global economy and disrupted energy supplies worldwide.
On Wednesday, US President Donald Trump stated that the US-Israeli campaign against Iran was “almost complete”. However, he warned that the country would be “hit hard” over the next two to three weeks as Washington presses toward its military objectives.
