‘God is good’: Rescued F-15 crew member’s hopeful radio message after ejecting over Iran revealed

WASHINGTON, DC: New details have emerged about the dramatic rescue of a US crew member from a downed F-15E fighter jet in Iran, shedding light on a high-risk mission carried out deep inside hostile territory.

The airman, who survived for more than 24 hours while wounded and evading Iranian forces, was eventually rescued in a complex operation involving hundreds of US special operations personnel.

President Trump described the mission as one of the “most daring” in US history.

‘God is good’ message

The rescued crew member reportedly said “God is Good” over the radio after ejecting from the aircraft, according to Axios. The phrase initially raised concerns among US officials, with Trump saying it sounded unusual during the early stages of the rescue effort.

Trump claimed the airman relayed the phrase “Power to be God,” adding that officials feared he may have been captured and was “sending false signals.” However, a US defense official later confirmed to Axios that the exact words were “God is good.”

Sources told the outlet that the crew member is religious, and others familiar with him said the statement was consistent with his beliefs. The two crew members had landed miles apart after ejecting from the aircraft, complicating the rescue effort.

Survival in hostile terrain

The airman survived for nearly 48 hours in mountainous terrain after the jet was shot down on April 4. According to the Daily Mail, he hid in a mountain crevice while armed only with a handgun and managed to evade Iranian forces searching the area.

The outlet further reported that the airman climbed a 7,000-foot ridgeline while attempting to avoid detection. A defense official said, “The two crew members were spread apart by a couple miles. Hundreds of IRGC soldiers were everywhere.”

Trump also described the situation in stark terms, saying, “Thousands of these savages were hunting him down.”

High-risk rescue operation

The rescue operation involved about 200 special operations troops and was supported by helicopters and drones. The Central Intelligence Agency launched a deception campaign to mislead Iranian forces about the airman’s location, the New York Times reported.

“The C.I.A. initiated a deception campaign to try to confuse Iranian forces, and convince them the airman had already been rescued and was moving out of the country in a ground convoy,” the report said.

US aircraft also carried out strikes on Iranian convoys to prevent them from reaching the area where the airman was hiding, the outlet added.

Extraction and final escape

After the airman was located, US forces carried out the extraction, but complications arose when two transport planes meant to evacuate personnel became inoperable at a remote base inside Iran.

Commanders ultimately deployed three additional aircraft to complete the mission and destroyed the disabled planes to prevent them from falling into Iranian hands, according to the New York Times

A CIA official described the operation as a near-impossible task, telling Axios, “This was the ultimate needle in a haystack but in this case it was a brave American soul inside a mountain crevice, invisible but for the CIA's capabilities.”