Tehran: In a stunning blow that has sent shockwaves through Washington, Iran has declared that “America’s reign is over” after claiming to shoot down a US F-15 fighter jet deep inside its territory. On what Iranian media is calling a “Black Friday” for the US Air Force, Tehran says its forces destroyed seven American aircraft in just the past 24 hours, including one F-15, one F-16, one A-10 Warthog, two HH-60 Pave Hawk helicopters, and two MQ-9 Reaper drones.
The F-15 was hit with “100 percent accuracy” while operating over Khuzestan or Boyer-Ahmad province. Both pilots ejected safely. American special forces managed to rescue one, but the second pilot remains missing, triggering an intense ground search by Iranian troops and even local tribes. Iran has already offered a big reward for his capture.
Iranian sources say the helicopters and the A-10 were destroyed while trying to locate the missing pilot, adding fresh embarrassment for the Pentagon. They have released what they call clear evidence of the wreckage, insisting no US plane is safe anymore in Iranian skies.
This comes on the 35th or 36th day of the conflict. President Trump had repeatedly boasted that Iran’s air defences were finished and American jets ruled the skies. Now, Iranian claims put total US losses at nearly $2 billion, including four F-15s, one F-35, an E-3 Sentry AWACS, and 17 Reaper drones — the heaviest single-day hit to the US Air Force since World War II, according to Tehran.
While many of these figures are still unverified by independent sources and the Pentagon has stayed largely silent, the downing of a modern fighter jet after 24 years has clearly rattled American confidence. Trump reportedly held an emergency meeting with his national security team as rescue efforts continue round the clock.
The message from Iran is loud and clear: the superpower’s dominance in the air has been challenged like never before.