Twenty-seven years after Serbia shot down a U.S. fighter jet with Russian missiles during the Kosovo War, Iran today announced the destruction of another American fighter aircraft.
Iranian armed forces announced that early this morning they shot down a U.S. F-15 fighter jet near the Iran–Kuwait border, with the aircraft’s wreckage falling inside Kuwaiti territory.
The news was reported by the Tasnim News Agency, which stated that the operation was carried out in the early hours of the morning. The aircraft was described as an advanced model of the U.S. Air Force.
Kuwait’s Ministry of Defense confirmed the incident through an official statement, noting that the wreckage of the aircraft was found within Kuwaiti territory. So far, no full details have been provided regarding the circumstances of the incident or the fate of the pilot.
Footage of the moment of destruction has been widely broadcast by various international media outlets.
The last time a U.S. fighter jet was shot down under wartime circumstances was 27 years ago, during the Kosovo War, when an American F-117 was downed by Serbian forces in 1999 using a Russian missile.
Since then, due to significant advancements in aerial technology and defense systems, no official reports have confirmed the downing of a U.S. fighter jet with a pilot during direct combat operations.
How the American fighter jet was shot down in 1999
During what is known as the Kosovo War, an American F-117 Nighthawk was shot down on March 27, 1999, just days after NATO began bombing Yugoslavia. The aircraft was a Lockheed F-117 Nighthawk, known as a “stealth” aircraft (with reduced radar visibility).
It was downed by the Serbian Air Defense Forces, led by Colonel Zoltan Dani. A Russian-made S-125 Neva surface-to-air missile system (known by NATO as SA-3) was used to shoot it down.
The American pilot, Dale Zelko, ejected and was later rescued by U.S. special forces.
- The event was considered unprecedented because it marked the first time a U.S. stealth aircraft had been shot down in combat and was seen as a symbolic blow to American military technology.
