Watch live: Trump to hold news conference after rescue of US aviators shot down in Iran

President Donald Trump will hold a news conference with Pentagon officials Monday afternoon as his imposed deadline for Iran and Strait of Hormuz nears. 

The White House said the briefing is scheduled for 1 p.m. ET in the Oval Office. You can watch it on LiveNow from FOX in the live player above. 

Airman rescued in Iran

What they're saying:

In a social media post Sunday, Trump said the rescue of the "highly respected colonel" took place "deep inside the mountains of Iran." 

"The Iranian Military was looking hard, in big numbers, and getting close," Trump wrote on Truth Social. This type of raid is seldom attempted because of the danger to ‘man and equipment.’ It just doesn’t happen! … We rescued the pilot in broad daylight, also unusual, spending seven hours over Iran. An AMAZING show of bravery and talent by all!"

A view of wreckage and remains of the downed F-15 fighter jet is seen in Iran on April 05, 2026. (Photo by Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Dig deeper:

According to Fox News, the CIA deflected enemy attention with a "deception campaign."

RELATED: Inside the daring rescue of airman behind enemy lines: How CIA assisted with 'deception campaign'

The CIA reportedly spread word in Iran through multiple sources that U.S. forces had already found the second of two airmen who ejected from their F-15, and were moving him out of Iran in a maritime exfiltration elsewhere, sources told Fox News. That was designed to buy time to find the stranded weapons system officer.

U.S. airman rescued from behind enemy lines in Iran

We are learning more after a social media post from President Donald Trump announced that the U.S. service member who had been missing since Iran shot down a fighter jet has been rescued. LiveNOW’s Andy Mac speaks with retired Lt. Col. Jason O. Harris as Trump and members of the military are expected to hold a press conference at the White House on Monday. 

The CIA picked up a distress signal, passing the intelligence on to the Pentagon and White House, which ordered the immediate rescue mission, Fox News reported. 

Once the CIA confirmed Saturday morning that it wasn’t a trap, the missing airman was located using advanced technical capabilities.

2 US planes downed in one day

The backstory:

The search for the crew member began after an F-15E fighter jet was shot down inside Iran on Friday. A second crew member was rescued shortly after the crash.

A second aircraft, an A-10 Warthog, was also reportedly hit by enemy fire Friday, but its pilot navigated the plane back to safe airspace before ejecting and being rescued, according to multiple reports. 

Both planes were hit two days after Trump boasted that the U.S. and Israel had destroyed Iran’s air defenses. 

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"They have no anti-aircraft equipment. Their radar is 100% annihilated," Trump said Wednesday during a primetime address. 

RELATED: 2 US military planes shot down in separate incidents

Four U.S. military planes had gone down during the Iran war before the F-15 and A-10 on Friday, but the F-15E was the first U.S. aircraft lost in Iranian territory. 

In those previous incidents, three fighter jets were hit by friendly fire over Kuwait and a refueling tanker plane crashed in Iraq, killing six U.S. service members.