Overview
- An F-15E called Dude 44 was struck by a shoulder-fired missile on April 2 and both crewmen ejected with callsigns Alpha and Bravo, U.S. officials have said.
- Bravo told CBS’ 60 Minutes that the missile damaged his parachute, he struck the ground at high speed and suffered a broken back, broken arm, a shoulder injury and other wounds.
- Injured and separated from his pilot, Bravo evaded capture for roughly 48 to 50 hours by climbing to a 7,000-foot ridgeline while Iranian forces searched the area and at times closed to within a few hundred meters.
- U.S. forces mounted a large rescue that combined CIA intelligence and deception, air strikes by bombers and drones, and special-operations teams on the ground—about 92 personnel entered Iran with hundreds more in the air and thousands supporting the mission—and two rescue aircraft and helicopters later were destroyed to prevent technology loss.
- The newly declassified video and Bravo’s first public account do not announce policy changes but add human detail to earlier official claims and confirm key tactical elements of one of the most complex U.S. recoveries in recent memory.