US in desperate search for missing aviator in Iran
Global News Podcast
BBC
4.3 • 8.2K Ratings
🗓️ 4 April 2026
⏱️ 28 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
American forces are searching for a missing crew member after a US fighter jet was downed in Iran. Iranian state media says Iran's security forces are also looking for the aviator. Iran is also claiming to have shot down a second US warplane over the Gulf. US media says the A-10 combat plane was shot at near the Strait of Hormuz during a search-and-rescue mission for the first downed aircraft. The pilot ejected and was rescued. Also in the podcast, Cuba begins releasing more than 2,000 prisoners as US pressure mounts. We'll hear about the Oscar winning documentary focusing on the empty bedrooms of children killed in school shootings. Why the recent Winter Olympic Games in Italy are being called the cleanest on record - but could this change? And the crew of Artemis II take "spectacular" image of Earth.
The Global News Podcast brings you the breaking news you need to hear, as it happens. Listen for the latest headlines and current affairs from around the world. Politics, economics, climate, business, technology, health – we cover it all with expert analysis and insight. Get the news that matters, delivered twice a day on weekdays and daily at weekends, plus special bonus episodes reacting to urgent breaking stories. Follow or subscribe now and never miss a moment. Get in touch: globalpodcast@bbc.co.uk
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | BBC Sounds, Music, Radio, podcasts. |
| 0:05.6 | This is the Global News podcast from the BBC World Service. |
| 0:11.6 | I'm Celia Hatton, and in the early hours of Saturday, the 4th of April, these are our main stories. |
| 0:17.7 | A US rescue team is desperately searching for an American aviator, still missing |
| 0:22.3 | after the Iranians shot down an F-15 fighter jet. We'll hear what the crew member is trained to do |
| 0:28.8 | to avoid capture. A French-owned cargo ship sails through the Strait of Hormuz, thought to be the |
| 0:34.7 | first vessel linked to a European nation to go through the waterway |
| 0:38.9 | since the Iranians virtually closed it. |
| 0:41.8 | And Cuba begins a mass release of prisoners following U.S. diplomatic pressure. |
| 0:49.0 | Also in this podcast... |
| 0:51.2 | She loved the lights. |
| 0:53.1 | And they've actually been on since she left them on. We haven't |
| 0:55.9 | turned them off. An Oscar-winning documentary about the empty bedrooms of children killed in mass |
| 1:02.5 | shootings. We'll start with the hunt for a missing American aviator inside Iran and how that person's fate could change how the U.S. and Iran handle this war. |
| 1:18.1 | Just over a week ago, President Donald Trump claimed there was nothing Tehran could do about U.S. aircraft in its skies. |
| 1:25.3 | He's facing a far different situation now that an American fighter jet's |
| 1:29.3 | been shot down in southern Iran. One crew member has been rescued, but as we record this podcast, |
| 1:36.2 | another remains missing, and so a major search and rescue operation is underway. |
| 1:41.3 | Iranian state television has been showing pictures of what it says is debris from the jet, |
| 1:46.5 | and the regime in Tehran has made clear the significance of this development. |
| 1:54.5 | If you capture and hand over a pilot or pilots of the enemy alive to the law enforcement and military forces, |
| 2:02.6 | you'll receive a valuable reward and prize. |
... |
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