Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth holds a briefing with Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Caine, amid the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, at the Pentagon in Washington, D.C. on March 19, 2026. REUTERS/Evan Vucci
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's claims early Thursday came under question after an American F-35 fighter jet had to make an emergency landing after coming under suspected Iranian fire during a combat mission over Iran.
Haley Britzky, CNN national security reporter, said that the incident was still under investigation but sources were saying Iranian fire had caused the fighter jet to land. This was reportedly the first known time that Iran has hit a U.S. aircraft. The pilot was reportedly in stable condition and the aircraft landed safely.
"Secretary Hegseth has come out repeatedly over the last several couple of weeks at these press briefings claiming very decisive victory," Britzky said.
"He said today, the U.S. is winning decisively against Iran, that the air defenses have been flattened, pointing to very high percentages dropping of these ballistic missile and drone attacks," Britzky said. "We, of course, still don't know exactly what happened here and what hit this aircraft, but it does raise questions about the effectiveness of these strikes if Iran is still able to do this and target a U.S. aircraft in this way."
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