First Hit: Iran Reportedly Struck a US F-35 Fighter Over Its Territory

A fifth-generation American F-35A Lightning II fighter jet had to make an emergency landing at a US base in the Middle East on Thursday after being hit by Iranian fire during a combat mission over Iran, according to CNN sources. If confirmed, this would be the first time since the start of Operation Epic Fury on February 28 that Iran has hit an American aircraft. CNN ↗

Captain Tim Hawkins, spokesperson for the US Central Command (CENTCOM), confirmed the incident, saying: "The aircraft landed safely and the pilot is in stable condition." However, CENTCOM declined to confirm whether the damage was actually caused by Iranian fire, stating that the incident is under investigation. Military Times ↗

Shortly after the incident, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) released footage via the Fars News agency that allegedly shows a surface-to-air missile striking the F-35. According to an analysis by The War Zone, the interface visible in the video corresponds to an electro-optical/infrared (EO/IR) guidance system in Iranian service. Analysts noted that "the physics after impact seem too complex to simulate" and that the video "doesn't look like AI," although its authenticity has not been independently verified. The War Zone ↗

The use of an EO/IR system is precisely what matters here. Unlike radar-guided missiles, these passive systems emit no radio signal — meaning the F-35's stealth technology, designed to minimize radar reflection, may not be effective against them. As The War Zone put it: "Mobile air defense systems can appear virtually anywhere and give crews very little time to react." The War Zone ↗

The incident is particularly striking from a political standpoint. Just hours earlier, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth declared at a Pentagon briefing that the US was "decisively winning" and that Iranian air defenses had been "leveled." He also announced that the US had struck more than 7,000 targets in Iran and promised "the largest strike package yet." The F-35 strike immediately called these claims into question. Fox News ↗

The F-35A is the most expensive fighter jet in history — a single unit costs approximately $82.5 million without the engine, with the Pratt & Whitney F135 engine the price exceeds $100 million. The F-35 program overall will exceed $2 trillion. The incident thus also raises the question of cost ratio: an Iranian missile costing a fraction of that price could have damaged an aircraft worth hundreds of millions. Simple Flying ↗

Iran has significantly reinforced its air defenses in recent months. Satellite images from February 2026 showed the movement of S-300 missile systems around Tehran and Isfahan. Iran has also integrated its domestically produced Bavar-373 system (range of up to 300 km) with Russian S-300s, deployed the Cobra V8 electronic warfare system, and the shorter-range Khordad-15 system. This has created a multi-layered defense combining both radar and passive systems. Defense Magazine ↗

This is the fifth known incident involving an American aircraft since the war began. On March 1, a Kuwaiti F/A-18 pilot shot down three American F-15E Strike Eagles in a tragic friendly-fire incident — all six crew members survived. On March 12, a KC-135 refueling aircraft with six crew members crashed in western Iraq, killing everyone on board. In total, the US military has recorded 13 killed and approximately 200 wounded soldiers. Military Times ↗ CBS News ↗

The investigation into the incident is ongoing. The Pentagon has so far neither confirmed nor denied Iranian claims of responsibility for the strike.