When US aircraft goes down in a war zone, the response is anything but ad hoc — it’s a tightly choreographed, high-stakes operation to get the pilots back to safety, keep sensitive technology out of enemy hands and deny adversaries both intelligence and propaganda wins.

It all started on Friday when a F-15E Strike Eagle fighter aircraft of the US crashed in the Iranian territory. The F-15E, a 4.5 generation aircraft, has a two-member crew: a pilot and a weapon systems officer.

Iran claims to have shot down another US F-35 fighter jet using its advanced air-defence system, raising pilot survival concerns after a massive explosion. This follows previous claims of downing an F-35,