Iran may have used deadly Russian shoulder-fired missiles to shoot down a US fighter plane, intelligence sources told The Sun.
Govt quietly clinches £450m deal moscow To buy 500 Verba launchers with 2,500 9M336 missiles as Donald Trump builds an armada in the region.
At least some are understood to have been delivered in January.
Intelligence analysts, speaking on condition of anonymity, claimed that the £60 million American F-15 Eagle jet downed on Friday was hit by Russian-sourced 9K333 Verba Man Portable Air Defense Systems (MANPADs) in a planned ambush.
The lethal missiles are effective against low-flying aircraft, helicopters and unmanned aerial vehicles.
Their altitude range is approximately 5 km, guided by a three-channel infrared seeker designed to improve resistance and reduce vulnerability to thermal decoys and other countermeasures of conventional fighters.
‘Got him’
Firefight erupts in daring special operations raid as US rescues downed pilot in Iran
fight of the decade
Floating hospitals and drone lasers: Trump’s troops ready to land in Iran
In a video promoted to scare the West, the IRGC claimed to have shot down an F-15 Eagle and an A-10 Warthog with a “new domestically produced air defense system.”
Iran’s long-range S-300 air defenses, which could threaten strategic bombers destroying underground command bunkers, missile factories and nuclear sites, were destroyed by American Tomahawk missiles, F-35 and F-22 stealth fighters in the early days of the war.
US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth claimed “complete air dominance” had been achieved at a Pentagon briefing last week.
But recently acquired short-range MANPADS could threaten fighters conducting low-altitude strikes against mobile missile launchers, military convoys and other “targets of opportunity.”
It comes as Trump confirmed today that a second US service member has been rescued from a remote mountainous area by a downed fighter plane.
The two-man plane – which is usually based at RAF Lakenheath, Suffolk – crashed on Friday during a flight over Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad province in southern Iran.
Elite units immediately rescued the pilot – but had to face a tough time rescuing the other crew member, a colonel.
Both of them jumped into enemy territory before the plane fell to the ground and exploded.
State media in Iran broadcast photographs of an ejector seat and tailfin – and newsreaders revealed a £50,000 reward for the capture of the crew.
Trump described it as “one of the most daring operations in American history” as he confirmed the success of the mission involving hundreds of special forces, dozens of aircraft and a CIA deception operation.
Analysts told The Sun that hundreds of special forces could have landed to protect the other F-15 airmen.
They may have been deployed to stop the IRGC in pitched battles as US air strikes attacked local tribal militias, who were offered £45,000 for the capture of the airmen.
MH-6 “Minibird” attack helicopters could provide heavy suppressive fire with rockets and a 7,000-round-per-minute minigun to engage Blackhawk “Nightstalkers” maneuvering at ground level in dense darkness.
Former Special Forces officer Ron McMannon told The Sun: “Navy Seals, Army Rangers, Air Force pararescue teams, satellite surveillance and every possible high-tech system would have been used to track the officer to his hiding place.”
The IRGC may also have been intercepting signals from the transmitter the airman was using to communicate with rescue teams, turning the search into a deadly race that could hand the decimated terror regime a badly needed war trophy.
Armed only with a handgun and suffering a leg injury, the airman had climbed a 7,000-foot hill before hiding in a crevice to escape local tribesmen armed with AK47s.
As soon as they put their survival, evasion, resistance, and escape (SERE) training into practice, CIA spies began their campaign of deception.
They used local contacts and other means to spread the word that the flyer had already been found and was being flown out of Iran in a ground convoy.
They hoped that local people could assist in a province that is less supportive of the regime in some parts, they were also contacted, a strategy known as “unconventional assisted recovery”.
Meanwhile, special forces led by Pararescuemen, America’s dedicated search and rescue force, were fine-tuning the final details of their recovery operation after finding a fixed location for the WSO.
The CIA eventually discovered its location, passed it on to the Pentagon and an incredible operation worthy of a Hollywood thriller went into action.
Israel assisted by launching a major attack on over 120 targets, effectively laying down a vast carpet of covering fire.
American troops did the same, bombing and firing at Iranian military convoys to clear the way for “one of the most challenging and complex missions in the history of American special operations”.
A series of Special Forces teams aboard HH-60W Jolly Green II helicopters flew to the confirmed target location, including commandos from Navy SEAL Team 6, the famous unit that killed Osama bin Laden in 2011.
The exact location of the rescue has not yet been confirmed, but two possible provinces – Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmed, and Khuzestan – were offered as the site of the downed jet.
A second jet – an A-10 Warthog – went down during a search and rescue raid.
Warthogs typically provide close air cover for missions in hostile territory.
Special operations pilot Tom Trask recalls directing an A-10 to “smoke out” a hovering enemy APC to rescue a downed American pilot during the 1990 Gulf War.
Friday’s defense would require a low dive by the A-10s to deliver accurate suppressive fire with GAU .30 mm Gatling cannons to disable threatening hostile ground forces.
If Air Force officers had been captured, they could have been tortured into revealing valuable information about their weapons systems.
They may also have been used as hostage bargaining chips to extract concessions from Trump under public pressure for the safety of his life.
Terror tactics may be all that is left for the IRGC, exposing sophisticated Russian SAMs to an evolving guerrilla strategy that, for the time being, appears to be backfiring.
The Sun previously reported how Russia was using satellite intelligence to leak the location of vital US radar to Iran – allowing the rogue nation to detonate the position directly.
One insider said: “Only a large fleet of high-orbiting spy satellites like Russia’s could direct precise attacks on THAAD batteries and radar networks”.
Inside the elite unit that raced to save the American pilot
By Robin Perry, Chief Foreign Correspondent
The search for the missing American pilot was led by the PJs, one of the most highly trained special forces units in the world.
Pararescuemen – whose sole focus is on personnel recovery (PR) – have an incredible range of skills that include parachuting from 30,000 feet, rescuing soldiers trapped underground, and conducting life-saving medical procedures while under enemy fire.
These units are often already deployed near combat areas from where aircraft can be taken out.
During World War II top officials realized the need for a dedicated rescue force and the Pararescue Unit was established in 1946 with the motto “These things we do, other people can do too”.
The nickname is derived from early flight logs when he was recorded as PJ, a combination of parachutist and jumper.
The unit consists of approximately 500 special operators who work as independent teams whenever an American or allied soldier requires rescue.
Security analyst Aaron McLean, a Marine Corps veteran, said: “They are an extraordinary group of special operators.”
His nickname is derived from early flight logs when he was recorded as PJ, a combination of parachutist and jumper.
The unit consists of approximately 500 special operators who work as independent teams whenever an American or allied soldier requires rescue.
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