Viral video of Iranian soldiers capturing an American fighter pilot after shooting down a US F15E jet

RATING JUSTIFICATION

The iVerify Pakistan team investigated this content and determined that it is false.

To reach this conclusion, iVerify Pakistan conducted a reverse image search and a keyword search to trace the original footage.

Multiple people were sharing two videos on several social media platforms since April 3, 2026, claiming to show Iranian forces capturing an American pilot after shooting down a US F15 fighter jet. However, the videos are old and unrelated to the current conflict in the Middle East.

The Middle East war has entered its 35th day with no let-up in hostilities. The conflict began on February 28, 2026, when the US and Israel carried out coordinated airstrikes targeting Iran’s military infrastructure, including missile systems and nuclear-related facilities. The strikes marked a significant escalation in tensions between the countries, following a period of heightened regional instability and previous confrontations.

On April 3, 2026, Iranian state media claimed that the country’s forces shot down a US jet over its southern region. The US later said that it rescued two of its pilots from Iran.

HOW IT STARTED

On April 4, a parody account named after former Iranian interim supreme leader Ayatullah Alireza Aarfi shared a video on X allegedly showing Iranian forces capturing an American pilot with the following caption: “Breaking: Watch the moment the American pilot was taken captive.”

It further questioned the authenticity of the video and the claim from the AI chatbot Grok in the caption.

The post gained 500,000 views.

A pro-Iranian user, based on his profile picture and past posts, also shared the same video in a similar context with the caption: “Urgent: Watch the moment of the capture of the American pilot.”

The post gained 1.5 million views.

An account shared the video with the same caption on X, garnering 1.5m views.

Another pro-Iranian user shared the same video with the following caption: “The American pilot who crashed in Iran was captured” on Instagram.

The post gained 1m views.

An Instagram page shared the same video with a similar claim, gaining 705,000 views.

An Iraqi user shared the same video in a similar context on April 5. The post gained 2.5m views and was liked by 130,000 users on Instagram.

A user, who usually reacts to different videos on Instagram, reacted to the same video without any caption. The post gained 1.5m views.

An author and novelist also shared the same video in a similar context on Instagram with the following text overlay: “The American pilot falling into the hands of the Iranians. Perhaps if he had stayed in his aircraft and died, it would have been easier for him. But now, he will be returned to them, not as he came but carried on a missile of their making.”

The post gained 2.5m views and gained 105,000 likes.

The video was widely shared on Instagram, as can be seen here, here, here, here, here, here and here; and X, as can be seen here, here, here, here, here and here.

The posts collectively gained 2.5m views.

A separate video also circulated on April 3, allegedly showing an American fighter pilot surrounded by Iranian forces amid Iran’s shooting down of an American F15 fighter jet.

A social media outlet shared screenshots from the video on April 3 on Facebook with the following caption: “Just in: A US helicopter was hit by an Iranian projectile during a search operation for the missing pilot of F-15, and now Iran captured all of American pilots and soldiers who were in Iranian missiles’ range.”

The post gained 635 likes.

A social media account shared the same video on Instagram on April 4, allegedly showing an American fighter pilot being surrounded by Iranian soldiers.

The post gained 4.2m views and attracted 38,000 likes.

Another user shared the same video in a similar context on X with the following caption: “Now: The American pilot is in the custody of the sons of Haidar al-Karrar”

The post garnered 551,000 views.

An Iraqi user, based on their bio, shared the same video in a similar context on Instagram, with the following layover, which translates as: “An Iranian farmer managed to capture one of the fugitive American pilots.”

The post gained 1.9m views and was liked by 18,200 users.

A pro-Iranian user, based on its profile picture and past posts, shared the same video in a similar context, gaining 237,000 views on Instagram.

Another pro-Iranian user, based on their past posts, shared the same video on Instagram with the following caption: “Al Jazeera obtains exclusive footage documenting the moment the American pilot was captured after his plane was shot down inside Iranian airspace.”

The post gained 548,000 views and 10,700 likes.

Several other users shared the same video on YouTube; on X, as can be seen here, here, here and here; and on Facebook, as can be seen here, here, here, here and here.

The post collectively accumulated 320,000 views.

METHODOLOGY

A fact check was initiated to determine the veracity of the claim due to its virality and keen public interest in the US-Israel war with Iran, along with Tehran’s takedown of American fighting aircraft.

A reverse image search using keyframes from the viral video yielded the same video shared by Libyan media outlet Fawasel Media on its Facebook page on March 2, 2026.

The video was captioned: “Watch | A member of the Thunderbolt Forces in Benghazi performs a parachute jump despite having a broken leg, and his colleagues welcome him upon landing.”

The caption concluded with a hashtag for “Libya”.

As can be seen, the video predates the shooting down of an American fighter jet on March 4, and the old video shows a Libyan soldier performing a parachute jump despite having a broken leg.

A keyword search yielded a full video of the same event with a different angle, which was shared by a user on Instagram on March 2, 2026.

The video was shared in the same context with the caption: “A scene of unwavering will: a free jump despite a broken leg. Such are the men of our nation, the heroes of the Libyan Arab Army. Praise be to God, a successful landing.”

The comparison of the two videos shows the same black-and-white striped cloth/flag appearing in the same position and form in both clips.

The comparison also shows the same parachute, with distinct holes visible in its canopy, appearing in both videos. This unique feature further confirms that the footage is identical and has been misrepresented with a false claim.

The broken leg can be seen at the 10-second mark of the old video, further confirming the claim is false.

Lastly, a keyword search confirmed that there were no news reports from credible mainstream international, American or Iranian media outlets regarding any such capture video of a US pilot. Instead, multiple new reports, by The New York Times, BBC and NBC News, mentioned that the US announced it had successfully rescued the second crew member of an F-15E fighter jet that had been shot down over Iran.

Similarly, for the second video, a reverse image search conducted to trace the source of the video showed that it was previously shared on several social media platforms such as Facebook, X, YouTube, and Instagram during the May 2025 conflict between India and Pakistan, with the claim that the Pakistan army had captured an Indian woman fighter pilot, Squadron Leader Shivangi Singh.

Upon further investigation, the same video was found to be shared on May 7, 2025, by a Pakistani digital media outlet, Tushna Dairy, on Facebook with the following caption: “A video of a parachute landing at Chitral airport two days ago without permission is being shared on social media with false claims linking it to an Indian pilot, although there is no truth to this video. The public is requested not to believe unverified reports. Video courtesy: Imtiaz Khan.”

Furthermore, a local paraglider from Chitral, Sajid Ur Rahman, said the individual in the video was a paraglider from Bangladesh who was visiting Chitral for paragliding. Due to abnormal weather conditions, he made a difficult landing in a restricted area, prompting security personnel to intervene, but he was later released after verification.

FACT-CHECK STATUS: FALSE

The claim that two viral videos show Iranian forces capturing an American fighter pilot is false.

The videos are old and unrelated to the Mideast conflict. Furthermore, no American fighter pilot has been captured by Iran amid the war between the two countries.

EVIDENCE AND REFERENCES

March 2, 2026, Fawasel Media Facebook video:
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1415092703144435

March 2, 2026, Instagram video:
https://www.instagram.com/p/DVZJigYDdlo/

May 7, 2025, Tushna Dairy Facebook video:
https://web.facebook.com/watch/?v=1074824204502848

May 8, 2025, Sajid Ur Rehman’s Facebook post:
https://web.facebook.com/SRG.Fans/posts/pfbid0hrx3pREs9kb2qD1Go2jqL3A6zih7iqE28aoL76fg9qQCWBAtTo2ZWruoFTeG1X5Ul