Second US plane crashes in Gulf after F-15 downed, NYT says

Summary

• A US A-10 Warthog crashed near the Strait of Hormuz on April 3, with the pilot safely rescued, as reported by the New York Times.
• This incident occurred around the same time Iran shot down a US F-15E fighter jet, prompting a search for the missing crew member.
• Iran claimed responsibility via Tasnim news, while the US Central Command dismissed prior claims of downing US aircraft as false. (BLOOMBERG)

NEW YORK – A second US Air Force plane crashed in the Persian Gulf region on April 3, the New York Times reported, with the US already carrying out search-and-rescue operations from another incident in which Iran downed a fighter jet.

The A-10 Warthog went down near the Strait of Hormuz around the same time that Iran shot down a US F-15E fighter jet, the Times said, citing US officials.

The lone pilot was safely rescued.

The US has rescued one of the two-man crew from the F-15 incident, according to a US official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to detail sensitive matters.

The official said a search operation is under way for the second crew member.

The first known combat loss of a US fighter jet would mark a significant escalation in the five-week war that already has triggered a global energy crisis.

President Donald Trump had been briefed on the F-15 incident, the White House said earlier April 3.

US Central Command did not respond to an earlier request for comment on the downed fighter jet.

Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency carried a report on April 3 that claimed Iran had shot down a “highly advanced American fighter jet.” 

Iranian state media have made prior claims of shooting down American aircraft that were denied by the US. The Pentagon’s Central Command on April 2 called false an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps claim that it had downed an enemy fighter jet over an island in the Strait of Hormuz.

“Iran’s IRGC has made the same false claim at least half a dozen times,” Central Command said in a social media post.

Iran targeted more sites in Arab Gulf states into April 3, hours after Mr Trump issued fresh threats against Iranian infrastructure to pressure Tehran to start peace negotiations. The US president posted a video of a bridge collapse to social media on April 2, warning there would be “Much more to follow!” if Iran doesn’t negotiate a deal. 

Iran remained defiant, with Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi saying strikes on civilian structures “will not compel Iranians to surrender.”

There is little sign that the country will relent on US demands to re-open the Strait of Hormuz and halt attacks, instead offering their own terms for a deal. BLOOMBERG