The US fighter pilot rescued by commandos after he was shot down by Iran in April has described how Iranian drones swarmed him in what appeared to be a “jellyfish” formation before he ejected from his plane, according to a report.
Iranian forces opened fire on the $31m F-15E Strike Eagle on 3 April, triggering a major search for the missing weapons-system officer, who held out in the mountains for hours before his dramatic rescue.
During a debriefing with intelligence officials, the pilot described seeing a unified and overwhelming drone formation resembling a jellyfish, sources familiar with the matter told CNN in a report published on Tuesday.
“Multiple drones interconnected and moving as one with smaller drones below the bigger drones like legs,” one of four sources familiar with the pilot’s testimony told the outlet. “Real alien s**t.”
The manoeuvre suggests a startling development in Iran’s ability to use drones en masse on the battlefield.
The cause of the F-15 downing – the first time a US aircraft had been shot down over Iran during the conflict – is still being investigated. Two of the sources told CNN that it was possible the “jellyfish” drone formation had enabled Iran to take down the all weather jet.
Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya joint military command said on the day of the incident that it had used a new air defence system which targeted a US fighter jet, three drones and two cruise missiles.
“The enemy should know that we rely on new air-defence systems built by the young, knowledgeable, and proud people of this country, unveiling them one after another in the field,” a spokesperson said at the time.
The pilot safely ejected and was rescued by two military helicopters on the day, despite one of the helicopters coming under small arms fire, according to CBS, citing US officials.
Intelligence officials later debriefing the pilot disagreed on whether they could recall the incident clearly, having been concussed in the crash, according to CNN.
Following the pilot’s recovery, the US military launched a multi-pronged rescue mission to bring back the missing officer, who US officials said was trapped in Iran with only a handgun to defend himself.
The CIA reportedly engaged in a deception campaign, spreading false information that the airman had already been found and recovered, according to CBS.
US president Donald Trump announced two days later that the second airman had been recovered and was “safe and sound”. He said he had sustained injuries but was “just fine”.
