CENTCOM says a U.S. F-35 made an emergency landing at a U.S. air base in the Middle East after it “was struck by what is believed to be Iranian fire,” according to sources quoted by CNN.
A U.S. F-35 Lightning II fighter jet was forced to make an emergency landing at a U.S. air base in the Middle East while it was “flying a combat mission over Iran,” according to U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) spokesperson Capt. Tim Hawkins. The specific variant of the aircraft and the service branch have not been specified.
“The aircraft landed safely, and the pilot is in stable condition,” Hawkins stated. “This incident is under investigation.”
New: A US F-35 fighter jet made an emergency landing at US air base in the Middle East after it was struck by what is believed to be Iranian fire, according to two sources familiar with the matter tell me and @OrenCNN
CENTCOM spox Capt. Tim Hawkins said an F-35 made the landing…
— Haley Britzky (@halbritz) March 19, 2026
CNN’s correspondents Haley Britzky and Oren Liebermann, quoting two sources familiar with the matter, say that the F-35 “was struck by what is believed to be Iranian fire.” We can’t independently verify this information and no other statement is available by official sources at the time of writing.
Breaking from @halbritz @OrenCNN :
A US F-35 fighter jet made an emergency landing at US air base in the Middle East after it was struck by what is believed to be Iranian fire, according to two sources familiar with the matter.
Capt. Tim Hawkins, a spokesman for US Central…
— Natasha Bertrand (@NatashaBertrand) March 19, 2026
If confirmed, this incident would represent the first instance of a U.S. aircraft hit by Iranian fire since the start of Operation Epic Fury on Feb. 28, 2026. The aircraft losses so far were three F-15E Strike Eagles lost to friendly fire in Kuwait and a KC-135 lost over Iraq after a yet unclear mid-air incident.
Moreover, this incident possibly represents the first time an F-35 Lightning II has been hit by enemy fire. The circumstances are unclear at the moment and, without further details, any discussion about the causes would be pure speculation.
Update 16:30 UTC
A video has been quickly released through the Iranian Fars News Agency by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which claims responsibility for the incident. The video, whose authenticity can’t be immediately determined, shows a surface-to-air missile hitting the F-35 apparently on the port side.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has release a statement, accompanied by video footage, which claims to show the targeting of an American F-35A/B Lightning ll with a surface-to-air missile in the skies over Iran. This claim by the IRGC follows reports that a F-35… pic.twitter.com/5omxjVESR3
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) March 19, 2026
The video ends just after the explosion, with the last frame showing what could be a fluid leak, in addition to the heat signature of the engine. Should the video be authentic, this could indicate the damage was not critical, allowing the pilot to reach a friendly airbase.
Footage is from Iranian state media, interface generally matches EO/IR systems in Iranian service, the video does not seem to be AI, though that is not a definite conclusion, and the post-impact physics seem too complex for a game like Arma or DCS. https://t.co/GQ3i7EvWae
— OSINTtechnical (@Osinttechnical) March 19, 2026
Is should be noted, however, that Iranian groups were quick to claim responsibility also for the F-15Es’ shootdown and for the KC-135 incident, both of which have not been attributed to enemy fire.
Meanwhile, CENTCOM declined to confirm whether the reports about the F-35 hit by Iranian fire are accurate.
In statement, @CENTCOM spokesman Navy Capt. Tim Hawkins says:
“We are aware of reports that a U.S. F-35 aircraft conducted an emergency landing at a regional U.S airbase after flying a combat mission over Iran. The aircraft landed safely, and the pilot is in stable condition.…
— Dan Lamothe (@DanLamothe) March 19, 2026
This is a breaking news story and will be updated as soon as new information is available.
