President Trump disclosed that American military officials initially suspected an Iranian deception when they received a radio message from the stranded weapons system officer whose F-15 had been shot down over Iranian territory.
The concern was serious enough that commanders worried the signal could be a setup to draw U.S. forces into an ambush. But after verification through multiple channels, the military confirmed the officer was alive and not in enemy custody, clearing the way for a nighttime special operations rescue Saturday.
Trump told Axios the Iranian military downed the jet with a shoulder-fired missile, calling it lucky marksmanship. The weapons system officer survived more than 24 hours in the mountains despite wounds, hiding in a mountain crevice while thousands of Iranian forces and civilians hunted him. The Iranian government even offered bounties for his capture.
The crew member's initial radio transmission added to the confusion. After ejecting, he broadcast: "Power be to God." To military officials unfamiliar with his background, the phrasing raised red flags. "What he said on the radio sounded like something a Muslim would say," Trump noted. A defense official later confirmed the exact phrase was "God is good."
Colleagues who knew the officer explained his religious devotion made the statement entirely consistent with his character, allowing commanders to move forward with confidence he was genuinely in distress rather than coerced into broadcasting false signals.
The two rescue operations unfolded under vastly different conditions. The pilot was extracted Friday in a daylight operation described as "a bold and quick snatch" while enduring heavy Iranian fire. The weapons system officer's rescue, conducted at night after the military established a temporary base inside Iran, involved roughly 200 special operations personnel and proved more complex given the officer's separation from his pilot by a couple miles and the presence of hundreds of Iranian Revolutionary Guard soldiers across the search area.
Israeli forces contributed to the operation in limited but meaningful ways. While Israeli intelligence did not provide specific location data on the weapons system officer, they shared broader battlefield intelligence and conducted at least one air strike to prevent Iranian forces from reaching the rescue zone. Trump praised the partnership. "They have been good partners. They have been great and brave people. We are like a big brother and little brother," he said.
Trump's account was corroborated by a U.S. defense official who confirmed the verification process and the concerns about false signals. "We stuck with it and verified he was alive and not captured. And those who knew him said he is religious," the official stated.
The rescue marked a significant operation deep in hostile territory, requiring coordination across multiple military branches and international partners while managing the risk of Iranian countermeasures and deception tactics designed to compromise the mission.
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