Iran’s downing of two American military aircraft marks an extremely rare attack for the United States, one that has not occurred in more than 20 years, and shows the Islamic Republic’s continued ability to fight back despite President Donald Trump claiming it has been “completely decimated.”
The strikes came five weeks after the first US and Israeli bombings of Iran, with Trump saying earlier this week that Tehran’s “ability to launch missiles and drones has been dramatically reduced.”
Iran shot down an American F15-E Strike Eagle fighter jet on Friday, with one crew member being rescued and the search still ongoing for a second, American officials say. Iranian state media also claimed that a US A-10 attack aircraft crashed after being hit by Iranian defense forces.
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The last time an American fighter was shot down in combat was an A-10 Thunderbolt II during the American invasion of Iraq in 2003, said retired Air Force Brigadier General Houston Cantwell, a former F-16 fighter pilot.
*This content was translated with the help of Artificial Intelligence tools and reviewed by the editorial team of Estadão.
