How the Two Downed F-15E Crewmembers Survived the Fall

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The ACES II ejection seat ensured that two US airmen shot down over Iran could make it safely to the ground—though this was only the first step in the rescue effort.

A US Air Force F-15E was shot down over Iran on Friday—the first aircraft confirmed shot down by Iran since the beginning of Operation Epic Fury. One of the two crew members was quickly recovered; the other was not, prompting a frantic search inside Iran complicated by the country’s remaining A2/AD systems and hostile ground forces also on the hunt. Ultimately, the missing crewmember was recovered on Sunday morning after an intensive two-day operation.

During that operation, an A-10 Thunderbolt II (“Warthog”) ground attack aircraft was also shot down, although its pilot managed to fly it back to Kuwaiti airspace before bailing out. Two additional aircraft involved in the rescue, a pair of C-130 Hercules transport aircraft, landed inside Iran, but became stuck in mud and were intentionally destroyed to prevent them from falling into Iranian hands. The total price tag of the weekend rescue mission........

© The National Interest