Home · World · Sep 29 archive
Robot Saves Pilots Shot Down by Iran
Confirmed
In Short: US military launched strikes against Iran after its helicopter was shot down, with pilots rescued by an unmanned boat.
US military helicopters went down over the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday, with its two pilots rescued safely by a drone boat, according to the U.S. military.
President Donald Trump announced that U.S. Central Command forces began launching self-defense strikes against Iran at 5 p.m. ET in response to the downing of the helicopter.
The U.S. military said the Apache helicopter was patrolling over the Strait of Hormuz when it was shot down by an Iranian drone, according to a U.S. official.
Both pilots were uninjured and were rescued by an unmanned boat, marking the first time American forces have used such technology in a rescue operation.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi did not mention any Iranian role in downing the helicopter, instead stating that U.S. forces are putting themselves at risk by being in the region.
The incident follows a series of confrontations between the U.S. and Iran, including the downing of a reconnaissance drone and a Saudi reconnaissance plane.
In a separate incident, Kurdish forces said they downed eight drones over Erbil with no damage or casualties reported.
The rescue of the pilots was a testament to the effectiveness of modern drone technology in military operations.
What's confirmed
- The separatists claim civilian pilots have been ferrying Indonesian troops into the region, and said Gosselin's death sent "a message".
- Separatist rebels say they have shot dead a US pilot and set his plane on fire in Indonesia's Papua region.
What's still developing
- Saree added that over the past 24 hours, a total of three reconnaissance drones belonging to Saudi Arabia were downed, including one that was spotted Monday morning in Bayda province.
- Iran-backed Houthi rebels claimed early Monday they downed a Saudi armed reconnaissance aircraft in the northern part of Yemen as the escalation with Saudi-backed Yemeni government forces continues.
- A man was transported to an Austin hospital after reportedly being shot by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent on Sunday.
- Downloadable PDFs are a benefit of an FP subscription.
- President Donald Trump sat down with the socialist leader of a major economy who he desperately wishes to impress.
- There is almost nothing to shoot down ballistic missiles with: the interception rate was 40% in June and 15% in July; on the night of Aug. 1, Russia launched 27 ballistic missiles at Ukraine, with Kyiv as the main target, and only one was shot down.
- Ukraine shoots them down at a rate of six in ten, compared with more than nine in ten for propeller-driven ones.
- Europe's best food experts are joining forces to crack down on fraud.
- U.S. military helicopters search for Dude44 Bravo during a massive combat search-and-rescue operation after his F-15E Strike Eagle was shot down over Iran in April. (U.S. Air Forces Central) "There was clear intent out of the Iranian ground force to come find those two guys," Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Dan Caine told CBS News this week.
- For six months, the war with Iran was disruptive but manageable.
- The Lithuanian Defense Ministry specifically thanked Italian pilots for their “swift and responsible response” in neutralizing the threat.
- New Delhi, Sep 3, 2026: Indian Air Force (IAF) fighter pilot Abhinandan Varthaman, who was held captive for three days in Pakistan after his aircraft was shot down in an air duel with a Pakistan Air Force jet in February 2019, has taken premature retirement from the Air Force to begin his new aviation career with a private airline as a commercial pilot.