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Claim: Several individuals and pages on social media have been circulating a photo which they claim shows a United States warplane crew member, described as an “honourable Colonel,” being rescued by American special forces inside Iran on April 4 or 5, 2026.
Verdict: False! The image is completely AI-generated and has no connection whatsoever to the actual rescue operation.
Full Text
In the early hours of April 5, 2026, a dramatic photograph spread like wildfire across X, Facebook, and other social media platforms, including WhatsApp.
The image appeared to show a smiling US airman, draped in an American flag, seated inside what looked like a military aircraft, surrounded by fellow soldiers, their arms around him, in a celebratory mood.
The post that ignited the viral storm was posted by the X account @missyismaga at approximately 12:22 PM on April 5. It carried the emotionally charged caption: “Here is the photo of the honourable Colonel being rescued yesterday— God bless him— our soldiers are ALL doing God’s work! HAPPY EASTER!”
Within a short time, the post racked up over 5.9 million views, along with 7.6k comments, 21k reposts, 105k likes, and 2.9k bookmarks before the author deleted it (archived here).
The image also gained significant traction on Facebook. An account named Mal Luber, for instance, garnered 4.3k likes, 865 comments, and 1.1k shares after sharing the same photo to his 4.6k friends.
Several other accounts and pages, such as Proudly Served, Bill Fleming, Battles Scrolls, and many more, followed suit, attracting significant reactions. More of such posts on Facebook can be found here, here, here, and here.
The timing was strategic. It surfaced just hours after former US President Donald Trump announced on his Truth Social platform that American forces had successfully rescued the second crew member of a downed F-15E Strike Eagle fighter jet from deep inside Iranian territory.
According to multiple credible international reports, the F-15E Strike Eagle was shot down by Iranian forces on April 3, 2026, over southwestern Iran, near the Zagros Mountains in Isfahan province. Both crew members ejected safely. The pilot was rescued relatively quickly.
However, the weapons systems officer, a wounded colonel described by Trump as a “highly respected Colonel,” evaded capture for nearly 48 hours in rugged, mountainous terrain while being hunted by Iranian Revolutionary Guard forces.
Trump, in a series of posts beginning around midnight on Easter Sunday, declared “WE GOT HIM!” and described the operation as “one of the most daring Search and Rescue Operations in U.S. History.”
Outlets such as The Guardian, BBC, Reuters, Al Jazeera, and others provided detailed coverage of the incident and the high-risk rescue, underscoring the need for DUBAWA to investigate further to verify against misinformation surrounding the viral image.
Verification
DUBAWA conducted a thorough, multi-layered investigation of the viral image using advanced AI detection tools, detailed visual forensic analysis, origin tracing, and cross-checking with established media reports.
1. AI detection tools
The image was submitted to Hive Moderation (thehive.ai) and returned a 99.9% probability that it was generated by artificial intelligence or contained deepfake elements.
It was also tested with Google’s SynthID digital watermarking tool. No SynthID watermark was detected. However, a detailed visual analysis revealed several inconsistencies typical of AI-generated images: “distorted stripe patterns on the American flag patches, irregular and blended stars and stripes, unnatural blending and shapes in the hands and fingers (especially where they rest on shoulders or hold the flag), and smudged, nonsensical mechanical details in the aircraft background.”
2. Visual forensic findings
Further manual examination by DUBAWA’s verification team uncovered additional tell-tale signs of artificial generation.
A US flag patch on the left sleeve sits at an unusual angle, rather than the standard right shoulder position required by military regulations. Another flag patch appears incorrectly on the front of a soldier’s chest.
Other anomalies include:
- The hand of the man described as the colonel, resting on the American flag, appears to have an extra finger and looks visibly distorted.
- The image has a grainy quality with a noticeably blurred background to omit details.
- The stripes on the American flag do not fold or drape naturally as real fabric would under gravity and movement.
Taken together, these visual artefacts make it highly likely that the image was created using AI technology.
3. Origin, caption, and spread
The image originated from pro-Trump social media circles. While some versions were later labelled “Made with AI”, the original caption used strong patriotic and religious language, including Easter greetings and praise for soldiers doing “God’s work”, which helped it feel authentic and spread rapidly.
Several politicians initially reposted the image before deleting their posts after increased scrutiny.
4. Absence of official confirmation
In high-stakes combat search-and-rescue missions deep in hostile territory, authentic images, if released, would normally come through official channels such as the Department of War, Pentagon, or White House after security review. No such images have emerged from this operation. Credible news outlets covering the story relied only on official statements, with no visual evidence from the rescue itself.
Nonetheless, a real and extremely high-risk rescue operation did take place. An F-15E Strike Eagle was shot down over Iran on April 3, 2026. One crew member was rescued quickly, while the second, a wounded colonel, was successfully extracted after nearly two days of evasion in the Zagros Mountains in a complex special forces mission that Trump described as historic.
However, the widely circulated photograph claiming to show the “honourable Colonel” being rescued is entirely fabricated.
It was created with artificial intelligence and deliberately timed to exploit genuine breaking news, geopolitical tensions, and emotional sentiments around Easter and patriotism.
Conclusion
The viral photo of a US air officer rescued in Iran is false and AI-generated. While the underlying military incident and the daring rescue of the F-15E crew members are factual events confirmed by multiple reliable sources, this specific image is not authentic in any way.
