The New York Times: The second U.S. military aircraft crashed near the Strait of Hormuz.
Citing officials, The New York Times reported that an A-10 "Warthog" attack aircraft crashed near the Strait of Hormuz, at roughly the same time as the U.S. F-15E fighter jet was shot down over Iran. The pilot has been safely rescued.
The U.S. has only acknowledged it as a "crash" incident, remaining ambiguous about whether it was shot down. Iran explicitly announced that it had shot down the A-10 attack aircraft and released footage showing the air defense missile strike.
The report mentioned that the crash time was "roughly the same" as that of the F-15E being shot down. It is highly likely that the A-10 was providing cover during the search and rescue operation for the F-15E, and subsequently came under Iranian retaliation.
If this A-10 was indeed shot down, it would mean:
- Iran can detect, lock onto, and shoot down a frontline tactical aircraft currently in active service with the U.S. military;
- Low-altitude operations by U.S. forces near Iran have become extremely risky—even the A-10, renowned for its low-altitude "skin-hugging" capabilities, is no longer safe.
Original source: toutiao.com/article/1861502592223296/
Disclaimer: This article represents the personal views of the author.