President Donald Trump announced Sunday that U.S. special operations forces had successfully rescued the second crew member of an F-15E Strike Eagle fighter jet shot down by Iranian forces over southern Iran on April 3.

The weapons systems officer, a colonel whose identity has not been released, ejected from the aircraft and spent more than 48 hours evading Iranian troops in rugged mountainous terrain.

He sustained significant injuries during ejection but is reported to be stable and “will recover without issues,” according to the president.

The operation was one of the most complex search-and-rescue missions in recent U.S. military history.

It involved dozens of combat aircraft and helicopters, nearly 100 special forces personnel, and extensive support from the CIA.

U.S. forces used bombs, artillery, and direct fire to keep Iranian search parties at bay, and at least one firefight with Iranian troops occurred during the extraction.

The CIA played a central role, locating the airman in a mountain crevice and conducting a deception campaign inside Iran by spreading false reports that he had already been found and evacuated.

Two of the five U.S. transport aircraft used in the mission could not take off and were deliberately destroyed on the ground to prevent them from falling into Iranian hands.

Trump personally ordered the immediate rescue and confirmed the outcome on Truth Social, writing:

“Under my orders, the U.S. military sent dozens of planes, armed with the world’s most lethal weapons, to rescue him… This brave warrior is now SAFE AND SOUND! WE WILL NEVER LEAVE A UNITED STATES WARRIOR BEHIND!”

The F-15E downing marks the first combat loss of a U.S. F-15 in more than 20 years.

The aircraft’s pilot was rescued the day after the incident.

Iran has also claimed it shot down a U.S. A-10 Warthog attack aircraft (whose pilot was later rescued) and a drone during the rescue efforts.

Iranian state media further reported that nomadic tribes in the region shot down two U.S. Black Hawk helicopters.

Iranian officials said civilian casualties occurred in the southwestern province of Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad, with five people killed and eight wounded in what they described as U.S. drone strikes in the Kakan and Vezg areas.

Experts described the success of such a rescue deep inside hostile territory as extremely rare, noting the airman’s training in evasion, survival, and concealment was likely critical to his survival until extraction.

The incident comes amid sharply heightened tensions between Washington and Tehran.

The White House has not publicly commented on Iran’s additional claims, other than to confirm the successful rescues.