New York, April 5 A US Air Force officer whose jet was shot down in Iran hid in a mountain crevice and hiked up to 7,000 feet to evade the enemy before he was rescued by American forces after a two-day "life-or-death" mission, the New York Times said.
On Sunday, US President Donald Trump praised the rescue operation for the pilot, for whom the Iranian regime had offered a reward, as an "amazing display of bravery and talent."
"We have rescued the seriously wounded and very brave F-15 crew member/officer from deep inside the mountains of Iran. The Iranian military was actively searching for him," Trump said in a post on Truth Social, calling the rescued crew "a highly respected Colonel."
"This type of raid is rarely attempted due to the danger to 'man and equipment.' It simply doesn't happen! The second raid came after the first, where we rescued the pilot in broad daylight, which was also unusual, and it took seven hours," he added.
The White House also stated on its social media accounts: "We will never leave an American warfighter behind."
According to a report in the New York Times, the Air Force officer was rescued by US Special Operations forces in a "risky mission" Saturday night.
"The rescue involved a race between US and Iranian forces to reach the airman, a weapons systems officer, which lasted for two days," the report quoted officials as saying.
The US fighter jet, an F-15E Strike Eagle, had been shot down by Iran over the southwestern part of the country on Friday.
Two crew members on the plane were able to eject, and while the pilot was rescued soon after, a search was launched for the other airman.
"After ejecting from the F-15E, the officer hid in a mountain crevice. He evaded Iranian forces for more than 24 hours, at one point hiking up a 7,000-foot ridgeline... His location was initially unknown to the United States, but the CIA found his hiding place," the report said, quoting information shared by senior administration officials.
The report said that American aircraft dropped bombs and opened fire on Iranian convoys to keep them away from where the airman was hiding.
"US commandos also fired their weapons to keep Iranian forces away from the rescue site as they converged on the airman, but did not engage in a firefight with the Iranians," a US military official said.
The NYT report said that Navy SEAL Team 6 commandos rescued the weapons systems officer in an operation that "involved hundreds of special operations troops and other military personnel working deep in enemy territory."
Soon after he was rescued, Trump announced on Truth Social late Saturday night that the United States Military had "pulled off one of the most daring Search and Rescue Operations in US History, for one of our incredible Crew Member Officers, who also happens to be a highly respected Colonel, and who I am thrilled to let you know is now SAFE and SOUND!"
"This brave Warrior was behind enemy lines in the treacherous mountains of Iran, being hunted down by our enemies, who were getting closer and closer by the hour," he said.
The rescued officer "sustained injuries, but he will be just fine," Trump said, adding that there were no American casualties as the US forces pulled off this rescue mission as well as another one involving another pilot.
Iran's regime had offered a reward for the capture of "enemy pilots," who it said should be turned over alive to security forces, according to a local affiliate of Iran's state broadcaster, the NYT reported.
In a separate incident, a lone pilot was rescued when another Air Force combat plane, an A-10 Warthog, had crashed in the Persian Gulf region on Friday.
The A-10 Warthog crashed Friday near the Strait of Hormuz, the critical oil chokepoint that Iran has blocked during the ongoing war.
The US president, in another post on Truth Social, restated his threat to attack Iran's civilian infrastructure if the Strait of Hormuz wasn't reopened and said, in his latest post on Trust Social, promised strikes on Iran's power plants and bridges on Tuesday.
The US and Israel jointly attacked Iran on February 28, killing Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and several top commanders.
The retaliation by the Islamic Republic extended the war to the entire Gulf region. The conflict has taken a major toll on energy supply chains, especially across the Strait of Hormuz.