E-Paper
‘Hope that’s not going to happen’: Trump tight-lipped on worst-case scenario in missing F-15 crew shot down by Iran
A US House Committee has been notified by the Pentagon that the status of a second service member is not known after the downing of the fighter jet.
US President Donald Trump on Friday said that Iran downing an Air Force F-15E jet won't derail the talks to end the war, while remaining tight-lipped on what Washington will do in the worst case scenario of the missing crew member being harmed.
Calling it “a war”, Trump said Iran’s actions won't impact the talks. “No, not at all. No, it’s war,” he told NBC News.
In another brief interview with The Independent, Trump said he could not comment on what his course of action might be if Iranian forces get to the downed airman, the first American aviator to be shot down over enemy territory since an A-10 “Warthog” pilot ejected into Iraq after being struck by a surface-to-air missile in April 2003, just weeks into Operation Iraqi Freedom.
“We hope that’s not going to happen,” Trump said.
Status of missing F-15E crew member unknown
The House Armed Services Committee has been notified by the Pentagon that the status of a second service member is not known after the downing of the fighter jet.
“The panel was told that an F-15 was shot down and one service member has been recovered. The other service member’s duty status is unknown,” a congressional aide told the Associated Press.
That generally means the Défense Department does not know the person’s whereabouts and they have gone missing.
Another US combat plane went down over the Persian Gulf, multiple media reports said, while adding that the pilot was rescued. The Iranian state media said that the A-10 “Warthog” was targeted by the IRGC near the Strait of Hormuz.
Multiple media reports in the US also suggested that two Air Force helicopters, at least one of which was a Black Hawk, were hit while on a rescue mission to retrieve the missing F-15E crew member.
No press appearance for Trump
The White House at 4 p.m. EST called a “lid” for the press, indicating Donald Trump would not be making any appearance in front of the media for the day.
The call came hours earlier than normal and signalled the president and White House are remaining tight-lipped as the search-and-rescue mission continued.
