WE GOT HIM! President Trump Responds As Second

Late Saturday night time, a number of news shops reported that the second crew member of the F15E fighter jet was rescued from behind enemy strains in Iran, and that the crew member and the rescue group had been all safely out of Iran.

Fox News can verify that the 2nd crew member of the downed F15E fighter jet has been rescued and he and the members of the rescue group that extracted him from behind enemy strains in Iran are all safely out of Iran. That according to two senior US officers and a number of properly… https://t.co/NKsLfayT53

— Jennifer Griffin (@JenGriffinFNC) April 5, 2026

Fox News can verify that the 2nd crew member of the downed F15E fighter jet has been rescued and he and the members of the rescue group that extracted him from behind enemy strains in Iran are all safely out of Iran. That according to two senior US officers and a number of properly positioned sources in the area. The Weapons Systems Officer ejected along with the pilot when their F15E Strike Eagle they had been flying was struck Thursday night time (early Friday local time) in southwest Iran. 

Shortly thereafter, President Trump responded:

🚨 BREAKING — PRESIDENT TRUMP RESPONDS TO SUCCESSFUL RESCUE OPERATION OF F-15 WSO

“WE GOT HIM!

My fellow Americans, over the past a number of hours, the United States Military pulled off one of the most daring Search and Rescue Operations in U.S. History, for one of our unimaginable… pic.twitter.com/k98aZoyBWP

— Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) April 5, 2026

My fellow Americans, over the past a number of hours, the United States Military pulled off one of the most daring Search and Rescue Operations in U.S. History, for one of our unimaginable Crew Member Officers, who also occurs to be a extremely revered Colonel, and who I’m thrilled to let you understand is now SAFE and SOUND!

The president’s full message:

FROM PRESIDENT DONALD J. TRUMP

WE GOT HIM! My fellow Americans, over the past a number of hours, the United States Military pulled off one of the most daring Search and Rescue Operations in U.S. History, for one of our unimaginable Crew Member Officers, who also occurs to be a extremely revered Colonel, and who I’m thrilled to let you understand is now SAFE and SOUND! This courageous Warrior was behind enemy strains in the treacherous mountains of Iran, being hunted down by our enemies, who had been getting nearer and nearer by the hour, but was never really alone because his Commander in Chief, Secretary of War, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and fellow Warfighters had been monitoring his location 24 hours a day, and diligently planning for his rescue. At my direction, the U.S. Military despatched dozens of plane, armed with the most deadly weapons in the World, to retrieve him. He sustained accidents, but he might be just high-quality. This miraculous Search and Rescue Operation comes in addition to a profitable rescue of another courageous Pilot, yesterday, which we didn’t verify, because we didn’t need to jeopardize our second rescue operation. This is the first time in army reminiscence that two U.S. Pilots have been rescued, individually, deep in Enemy Territory. WE WILL NEVER LEAVE AN AMERICAN WARFIGHTER BEHIND! The fact that we had been in a position to pull off both of these operations, without a SINGLE American killed, or even wounded, just proves once again, that we’ve achieved overwhelming Air Dominance and Superiority over the Iranian skies. This is a second that ALL Americans, Republican, Democrat, and everybody else, ought to be proud of and united around. We really have the best, most skilled, and deadly Military in the History of the World. GOD BLESS AMERICA, GOD BLESS OUR TROOPS, AND HAPPY EASTER TO ALL!

Griffin, meanwhile, had more on what went down:

The WSO used the SERE (Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape) training to evade seize, hiding on an elevated ridge after mountain climbing away from the wreckage and placing out an emergency beacon.) US Special Operations rescue forces to embrace PJs (United States Air Force Pararescuemen (PJs) and many layers of elite rescue forces took half in the complicated, layered mission to both discover the crew member and also keep the Iranian forces who had been looking the American weapons system operator at bay. There are videos that have appeared from local eyewitnesses that show what seem to have been injured and useless Iranian members of the IRGC and Basij who had been wanting for the downed American crew member. Fox has realized there was preventing on the ground but no Americans killed during the operation. “It was a very complex operation to retrieve the downed service member,” a properly positioned source briefed on the operation told me. Many different branches of the US army had been concerned in the rescue.

MORE: Clock’s Ticking: Trump Warns Iran They’ve Got 48 Hours to Open Hormuz or Face Hell Raining Down

Reports: 1 Crew Member Rescued After Iran Downs US Fighter Jet, Search Continues for Second

The preventing obtained heavy as both American and Iranian forces desperately searched for the downed pilot:

An American airman who went lacking after Iran shot down an F-15 fighter jet has been rescued after a “heavy firefight,” a US authorities official told Al Jazeera.

Although the weapons officer has been recovered, it’s understood the operation is still ongoing and the crew might still be in Iranian territory and in hazard.

It comes after studies of air strikes in a single day in Dehdasht, close to where the plane was shot down. 

Two crew members had ejected from the airplane after Tehran’s forces downed it on Friday, one of whom was situated shortly after the crash, but the whereabouts of the second had been unknown. 

The ensuing manhunt for the lacking weapons officer triggered a race between American forces and armed Iranian nomads motivated by a £50,000 bounty provided by the Islamic Republic for the airman’s seize.

They obtained him.

F-15E weapons officer — 36+ hours behind enemy strains in Iran. Bounty on his head. Armed tribesmen looking him. IRGC on the ground.

US particular forces fought their manner into the mountains. Helicopters took MANPADS fire. The A-10 flying cowl obtained shot down.

They saved… pic.twitter.com/6uBT7LNmHW

— IredcapI (@IredcapI) April 4, 2026

They saved going back in.

Both crew home.

This is extraordinarily good news as we head into Easter. God bless our troops.

UPDATE 4/5/26 12:48 a.m.

Adding this tweet because it is excellent:

I’m speechless. I do know our guys are actually good, and I used to be hopeful but this was as high stakes as it will get. This might be army lore for 30+ years. You make films about this stuff & people received’t consider it.

WSJ & Washington Post also confirming.

Welcome home, mates! https://t.co/CmYLCPThz8

— KC-10 Driver ✈️ 👨‍✈️ B-737 Wrangler (@MCCCANM) April 5, 2026

Editor’s Note: For a long time, former presidents have been all discuss and no motion. Now, Donald Trump is eliminating the menace from Iran once and for all.

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