The videos have all been geolocated by GCR to an area of western/southwestern Iran. The search area appears very large — two of the videos when geolocated show areas at least 150 miles apart. One is a bridge going over the Karun River in Khuzestan province, the other video shows an A-10 thought to be providing air cover for C-SAR assets located 150 miles south near Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad province.
A U.S. Air Force fighter has been shot down over Iran according to two U.S. officials who spoke with the Washington Post. The fighter, an F-15E Strike Eagle from the 494th Fighter Squadron (“Panthers,” 48th Fighter Wing, RAF Lakenheath, UK), carries a crew of two ,pilot and a weapons systems officer, both of whom are still missing after go ejecting from the aircraft.
Currently a search and rescue mission is underway for the crew. Video verified by GCR shows HC-130J Combat King II aircraft flying low over parts of Iran. This tanker is also shown refueling at least two HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopters, which specialize in C-SAR (Combat search and rescue) operations. Other videos from the same region show additional U.S. aircraft flying low over the area where the plane was thought to have been downed. In another video the search and rescue assets take small arms fire from the Iranian military/IRGC. Also shown in these videos is an HC-130 Combat King II which acts as a mobile surveillance platform and specializes in C-SAR missions.
This news is less shocking than it could be, as this morning images appeared on Iranian state media that appeared to show the wreckage from a U.S. fighter. Iranian outlets (including Tasnim and IRIB) initially claimed the downed jet was an F-35 stealth fighter, but quickly aligned their reporting with the visible wreckage, which clearly matches an F-15E Strike Eagle. The debris shows burned and fragmented sections of the vertical tail, wings, and fuselage, with distinctive markings including the “LN” tail code, red/yellow band, “EUROPE” script, and U.S. Air Forces in Europe badge, consistent with the 494th FS aircraft.
Iranian state television has gone further, urging civilians in the area to search for the missing American crew and offering rewards for their capture. The IRGC is treating the incident as a major propaganda victory.
This is a rapidly developing story as part of the ongoing U.S./Israeli Operation Epic Fury. U.S. officials have confirmed the loss to select media, but CENTCOM has not yet issued a full public statement. GCR will continue monitoring and geolocating new videos as they emerge.
Global Conflict Reporting 
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