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is the race on to find that missing US airman behind enemy lines
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after Iran shot down a fighter jet yesterday afternoon. US media reported one crew member has been rescued by US forces
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marking the first time that American boots are actually on the ground in Iran
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since the war began at the end of February. There are reports coming in this morning that the jet was downed
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was based out of RAF Lakenheath in Suffolk, which, given our Prime Minister's assertion
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that we are only letting the Americans use for defensive purposes, maybe there's some questions to be answered there
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So let's talk to former head of the British Army, Lord Richard Dannett
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Lord Dannett, thank you so much for joining us. Very good to see you and a very happy Easter to you and yours
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What do you make of this situation that we have developing now? Well, let's just deal with that issue of the jet being based at Lakenheath in Suffolk
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Yes, I'm in Norfolk at the present moment, and actually I know the bases at Mildenhall
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in Lakenheath very well. Yes, the aircraft may well have its permanent base there, but it will have been forward
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based to somewhere in the Middle East region. So if there's any suggestion that the Americans are playing fast and loose with Keir Starmer
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to say we can only use their bases for defensive operations. No, these aircraft have deployed forward
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from where they're permanently based to an operating base somewhere in the Middle East region
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and that's where they're operating. I think it's important to get that particular canard out of the way
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Having said that, one feels huge sympathy and worry for the friends and family of the Airmen lost
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But I think as time goes on, one has to get increasingly concerned
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that whereas one of the two, presumably they both ejected, one was found quite quickly and rescued by combat search and rescue The other well one has to wonder did he die on impact Did his equipment which otherwise would have emitted a signal
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that the rescuers could have found him, was that destroyed? So is he dead? Is he making his way
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somehow, and they are combat survival trained to escape and evade, trying to find his way to
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friendly territory, or, well, we don't know. It's a big story, it's a worrying story
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and I think we just have to watch. And actually, over this Easter period
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I hope and pray that there's a good outcome from the Americans' point of view. Well, of course
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You mentioned they would be trained to deal with the circumstances. What sort of things would they be doing
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Hopefully this person, we don't even know if it's male or female, hopefully this person has survived
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What would be their first port of call? What would they do? Well, one has to assume that the radio emitter that is part of their escape and evasion equipment is not working
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If it was working, then the combat search and rescue teams, just in the way that they rescued the first pilot and the pilot of the 8N Thunderbolt that came down in the same mission
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that his signal would have been picked up and that they would have moved in quite quickly
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with Black Hawk helicopters to have picked them up. So one has to assume that this is not working
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So if this person is still alive, and that's sadly an open question
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they have been trained in escape and evasion and would have basic map and compass equipment
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probably tied into their personal equipment and we'll be trying to work out which is the way to the nearest friendly country, which
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is probably quite a long way away So this is not a great story It potentially tragic if this person has died potentially very difficult if this person is still struggling to stay alive And then it introduces all the complexities
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of where does this place the overall mission? And I think that's an open question for now
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Lord Dunn, we have been in this situation before with our serving personnel being captured
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by the enemy. We saw it in Iraq, obviously. What damage could it do to the conflict and
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to Donald Trump's ambitions if Iran do capture this pilot alive and parade him on Iranian
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TV, as we have seen in the past? Well, I think that'll be down to Donald Trump. And so far, from what I've heard that he has
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said, is that he's rather taking the attitude, well, this is war, bad things happen in war
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and let's just see what turns out to be. Now, I think probably the worst set of circumstances
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for the Americans is that this airman, airwoman, aviator is captured and is paraded on Iranian television
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And that, of course, would be a huge propaganda coup for them
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But you have to ask the bigger question, and I'm being really hard now
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is one person's life, How does that sit in the balance about the success of the overall operation
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I think many of us have been looking at this operation for quite some time and think, oh, my goodness, did you really want to start this
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Did you really anticipate where this was going to go? And what's your plan to end it
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And I think that the sooner Donald Trump finds a way, if he likes, in his own words, declaring victory and ramping this thing down, I think the better for world stability, for the world economy
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to an extent for Iran as well. I'm less concerned about Iran
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because Iran has been exporting terrorism across that Middle East region for quite some time But I think for the wider interests of the world economy to stop this war as soon as possible to try and stabilise fuel and energy prices as quickly as possible
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is in everyone's interest, including the Chinese, and I'm not so fussed about the Russians
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Lord Danit, you have obviously, you know, you're former head of the British Army
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How confident are you that there was an exit strategy planned before we got involved in this
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Well, the way things have gone on, I'm not at all confident that there was
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I think the—undoubtedly that the Americans and the Israelis have been planning for quite some time to strike Iran
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Now, five Saturdays ago, maybe six Saturdays ago, early in the morning
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the Israeli intelligence service Mossad discovered that the Iranian supreme atoller leader
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was in one place at one time with many of his senior officials
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and they chose to take them out, and that kicked off the whole war. Now, that may have preempted what the Americans had in mind
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but I would like to think that the Americans, and we know the American military extremely well
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and they are extremely good at planning a campaign, but had they really thought it through when this thing started
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how it was going to end, and had they really thought about the obvious thing that the Iranians would do
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which was to put their foot on the neck of the West, which was to strangle the Straits of Hormuz
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And that's the big issue that's affecting international trade, oil prices and the world economy
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Lord Dannett, thank you so much for joining us. That's former head of the British Army there, Lord Richard Dannett
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Thank you so much for joining us on that continuing story. We will bring you any updates as and when we have them
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but as far as we're aware at the moment, the search is still ongoing for that missing pilot in Iran
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behind enemy lines, obviously, which does mean there are American boots on the ground
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And what developments that leads to, we will wait and see
