Also Read | US jet shot down in Iran: Israel says one pilot rescued, search on for second one“You’re like, ‘Oh my God, I was in a fighter jet two minutes ago, flying 500 miles an hour, and a missile just exploded literally 15 feet from your head,’” recalled Houston Cantwell, a retired US Air Force brigadier general, to AFP.Cantwell explained that a pilot’s training—known as survival, evasion, resistance, and escape (SERE)—would likely kick in before parachuting to the ground. “Your best view of where you may want to go or where you may want to avoid is while you’re coming down in your parachute,” he added.Also Read | Iran announces $60,000 bounty for American pilots after shooting down fighter jetHe warned that parachuting carries risks of foot, ankle, and leg injuries. “There are many stories of survivors from Vietnam who had severe injuries—compound fractures—just from the ejection,” the former airman noted.Once on the ground, pilots must quickly assess their condition. “Take an inventory of yourself to figure out, what condition am I in? Can I even move? Am I even mobile?” Cantwell observed.They then determine their location, whether they are behind enemy lines, and how best to hide or communicate. “Try to avoid enemy capture as long as you can. And if I were in a desert environment, I’d want to try to find some water,” he added.Also Read | ‘Can anyone find our pilots? Please?’: Iran ridicules US following American jet lossCombat Search and Rescue (CSAR) teams play a critical role. “It gives you tremendous peace of mind… they’re going to do everything they can to come get you. At the same time, they’re not going to come on a suicide mission,” Cantwell noted.For the missing crewmember, concealment is the top priority. “I want to try to get to a location where I can get extracted.” Movement is usually safest at night, using rooftops in cities or fields in rural areas suitable for helicopter pickup.Cantwell also mentioned that pilots often carry personal weapons, like a pistol, to increase their chances of survival.‘Extraction troops are always on standby’Meanwhile, Scott Fales, a retired master sergeant and former CSAR member, noted that extraction troops are always on standby whenever US aircraft operate over enemy territory.Also Read | ‘One by one’: Iran downs another US jet after F-15E, crashes into Hormuz; watchFales, who served as a pararescue jumper, played a key role in the 1993 “Black Hawk Down” incident in Mogadishu, Somalia.“Before any operations are conducted… there is always a CSAR plan,” he told AFP.At the same time, intelligence teams gather and analyse every detail about the missing aviator. “Everything from human intelligence to imagery intelligence to all the different drones we have looking—signals intelligence,” Fales explained. “It’s all being used to try to find this guy.”Once the aviator is located, a rescue plan is developed in real time inside the helicopters. “Those gunners are spotting and looking for threats; the pilots are looking for a place to land, we’re reaching out to that downed aviator,” he said.On the ground, crews confirm the pilot’s identity and weigh threats against medical needs. Fales described the process: “What kind of immediate threat are we in? How much time do we have to get this person out? What kind of injuries do they have? And then we’ll make up our mind on the type, amount of treatment that’s needed on the scene—or do we just grab and go depending on the threat?”With a fellow soldier still unaccounted for in southwest Iran, Fales remains cautiously optimistic. “I’m hoping that friendly people have found him and are hiding him, or he’s still evading,” he stated.During the ongoing United States‑Israel military campaign against Iran, dubbed Operation Epic Fury by the Trump administration, the US has suffered multiple aerial losses. In early March, three F‑15E jets were downed in a friendly fire incident over Kuwait, though all six crew members were safely recovered. Days later, a KC‑135 Stratotanker crashed in western Iraq, killing all six crew.