Photos appear to show destroyed US aircraft left in Iran after special forces rescued a stranded F-15E airman

Multiple Western reports said the US bombed its aircraft to prevent them from falling into Iranian hands. SOCIAL MEDIA/Social Media via REUTERS 2026-04-06T04:39:33.065Z Share Copy link Email Facebook WhatsApp X LinkedIn Bluesky Threads lighning bolt icon An icon in the shape of a lightning bolt.

Impact Link Save Saved Read in app This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Become an Insider and start reading now. Have an account? Log in. US special forces rescued an F-15E airman after he was stranded for about two days in Iran. Photos appear to show the remains of some aircraft used in the operation sitting in the desert. Multiple reports said US forces ditched and bombed the aircraft when they couldn't take off. AI-generated summary Summaries are generated by an AI model trained on Business Insider's articles. AI may make mistakes or provide inaccurate/incomplete information. We're unable to load that answer right now. Please try again. What is Operation Epic Fury's objective? What are MH-6 Little Birds used for? What is the role of the MC-130 in missions? How do US forces handle stranded personnel? How does Iran respond to US military actions? Several photos appear to show the remains of the turboprop planes and helicopters that US special forces used while rescuing an F-15E weapons system officer stranded in Iran. Loading audio narration... The images, which emerged on social media on Sunday evening and were spread by Iranian state media, appear consistent with multiple Western reports that US forces ditched and destroyed the aircraft near the end of the mission.Some of the photos appear to show wrecked propellers and the nose of at least one turboprop plane. Two destroyed propellers are visible in this image taken in the desert. SOCIAL MEDIA/via REUTERS It's unclear exactly when the photos were taken. The wreckage appears consistent with the propellers of a turboprop transport aircraft. SOCIAL MEDIA/Social Media via REUTERS Another image appears to show a destroyed helicopter main rotor that would have been fitted with six blades. This destroyed helicopter rotor likely had six blades. SOCIAL MEDIA/via REUTERS William Goodhind, an independent open-source investigation researcher, told Reuters that the images appeared to show distinct features of a destroyed Lockheed Martin MC-130.The medium-sized transport plane, which features four propellers, is based on the C-130 Hercules and used by US special forces, often for exfiltration and infiltration. Photos of the aircraft wreckage emerged on Sunday. SOCIAL MEDIA/Social Media via REUTERS Multiple American media reports have said that during the rescue mission, US commandos retrieved the F-15E airman but were unable to take off with two MC-130s from a remote airstrip established in the nearby desert.To keep the aircraft from falling into Iranian hands, US forces destroyed the planes, instead calling in replacement aircraft to exfiltrate the ground teams, officials told US media. This metal debris appears consistent with aircraft parts. SOCIAL MEDIA/Social Media via REUTERS The New York Times also reported that four Boeing MH-6 Little Birds — helicopters with six-bladed rotors used by US forces to fetch the stranded officer from their hiding position — were left behind and intentionally destroyed by American warplanes.On Sunday evening, President Donald Trump announced that the airman had been rescued, calling the operation "one of the most daring" search-and-rescue missions in US military history. The weapons system officer was one of two US Air Force service members who ejected from an F-15E Strike Eagle shot down on Friday in Iran, about two days before his rescue.His crewmate, the F-15E's pilot, was retrieved separately by US forces several hours after they ejected. Several reports indicated that two search-and-rescue helicopters were hit during the operation to exfiltrate them, but returned safely to base. The loss of the F-15E marks the first time that a US aircraft was destroyed over Iran since the Pentagon and Israel began Operation Epic Fury on February 28.Other American warplanes have been lost during the war, however, and several others have been severely damaged. On Friday, an A-10 Warthog crashed in friendly territory after being hit, with its pilot safely ejecting. Three other F-15s were also destroyed last month over Kuwait, in what US Central Command said was likely a friendly-fire incident involving local air defenses. The six pilots and weapons systems officers ejected and survived.On March 12, all six crew members of a KC-135 died after the refueling aircraft crashed in Iraq. The US says that at least 13 of its troops have been killed during this year's combat operations with Iran, with roughly 350 service members also wounded. Human rights organizations have published differing estimates for casualties in Iran, with rough death tolls last week ranging from 1,900 to 3,500 deaths.