Pilot downed over Iran linked to Kuwaiti friendly fire

The F-15E pilot shot down over Iran was previously forced to eject during a Kuwaiti friendly fire incident in the opening days of the war, CBS News reports. After safely ejecting once in Kuwait, the pilot was hit by a surface-to-air missile over Iran on April

The pilot of an F-15E fighter jet downed over Iran had barely had time to come back from a separate shootdown—one involving friendly fire by Kuwaiti air defenses just weeks earlier. This time, the jet was struck by a surface-to-air missile, forcing yet another high-stakes rescue.

Just over 30 days after safely ejecting during the friendly fire incident. the pilot was on a mission over Iran when the aircraft was hit by a surface-to-air missile. prompting a rescue operation. two people familiar with the incidents said. The jet was later downed over Iran, setting off a different kind of race against time for the crew.

CBS News previously reported that the pilot sustained serious injuries and was rescued after several hours. The second crew member was rescued after nearly two days in hiding.

The earlier shootdown, tied to Kuwaiti forces, unfolded in the opening days of the war. The pilot was among six aircrew members who safely ejected after three F-15E Strike Eagles were mistakenly shot down by Kuwaiti air defenses—specifically. a Kuwaiti fighter jet—over Kuwait in a friendly fire incident.

After that. the pilot was forced to eject again when the F-15E they were flying was shot down by an Iranian missile on April 3. The dual shootdowns—first tied to the fog of war over Kuwait. then to combat over Iran—were first reported by national security reporter Sean Naylor in his Substack. The High Side.

During an April briefing at the White House after both crew members were rescued, Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Dan Caine praised their survival and evasion.

“The courage demonstrated by both the pilot and the weapons system officer while isolated and them evading the enemy cannot be overstated. ” Caine said. “Their grit and warfighting tenacity is a direct result of the absolute trust they have in our rescue forces. their training and their will to survive and return. ” he added.

The Pentagon referred questions to U.S. Central Command, which declined to comment.

Retired Air Force Lt. Gen. David Deptula. dean of the Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies and the principal attack planner for the air campaign for Operation Desert Storm. called the sequence unusually rare. “It is a highly unusual coincidence,” Deptula said in a phone interview. “I couldn’t think of a pilot being shot down in separate incidents during the same campaign since potentially as far back as the Vietnam War.”.

“It’s like getting hit by lightning twice,” Deptula said.

From the Kuwaiti friendly fire incident—where three F-15E Strike Eagles were mistakenly shot down—to the April 3 mission over Iran involving a surface-to-air missile. the same crew has now been forced into survival mode twice. And in between those incidents. the clock still kept moving: just over 30 days after ejecting safely in Kuwait. the pilot was again facing the moment when an aircraft goes down and the only questions left are whether rescue will arrive in time and whether the next hours can be made to last.

F-15E Iran Kuwaiti friendly fire surface-to-air missile April 3 pilot rescue Dan Caine U.S. Central Command Operation Desert Storm Sean Naylor