Fact Check: Iran shot down US Air Force F-22 Raptor? This video is from Greece

India Today Fact Check found that the burning fighter jet in the video has nothing to do with the US-Iran conflict.

India Today Fact Check

Claim
Iran's upgraded air defence system shot down a US Air Force F-22 Raptor fighter jet.

Fact
The video shows a Greek Air Force F-16 that caught fire after making an emergency landing because of a technical fault on July 9. There are no credible reports of Iran shooting down a US F-22 Raptor.

Amid Iran’s intensified military actions against US military establishments across Kuwait, Bahrain, and Jordan, several social media users shared a video allegedly showing an F-22 Raptor fighter jet of the US Air Force shot down by the nation.

The video shows a fighter jet engulfed in flames beside a taxiway at an airport as firefighters try to control the fire. The clip was shared with claims like, “After upgrading its air defence system, Iran shot down the F-22 Raptor, the newest and most powerful American fighter aircraft. Iran is now a superpower, a superpower that has defeated the United States. If the countries of the region have any wisdom, they should serve Iran instead of the United States.”

India Today’s Fact Check, however, has found no credible reports of an F-22 Raptor being shot down, even in the Iranian media. The video is also unrelated.

OUR PROBE

Keyword searches in English and Farsi on whether Iran shot down a US fighter jet recently did not yield any results, not even in state-controlled Iranian news outlets like IRIB and IRNA.

Upon reverse-searching frames from the viral video, we found the clip on the YouTube channel of The Independent, a UK-based news outlet.

Shared on July 10, the video’s caption and description noted that this accident had occurred in Greece. An F-16 fighter jet belonging to the Greek Air Force had reportedly crashed at the Zakynthos International Airport on July 9 and burst into flames.

As per the reports in the BBC and Times of India, dated July 9, the F-16 fighter jet developed a technical fault with an indication of an onboard fire, and it was forced to land without its landing gear. This crash landing ignited flames on the runway, prompting an emergency response from firefighters and airport personnel.

Reportedly, the fighter jet slid dozens of metres along the runway and burst into flames. Firefighters quickly covered the aircraft with foam and brought the fire under control.

Fortunately, the pilot escaped the aircraft safely, and no major injuries were reported. No injuries to airport personnel or civilians were also reported. However, the terminal of Zakynthos International Airport had to briefly suspend its operations.

Therefore, it is evident that the claim that Iran shot down an F-22 Raptor of the US Air Force is not true.

- Ends