U.S. special forces, including Navy SEAL Team 6, successfully rescued an American airman shot down over Iran in what officials are calling one of the most daring rescue operations in U.S. history. The airman evaded Iranian forces by hiking 7,000 feet up a mountain and hiding in a crevice while armed only with a pistol, a beacon and a communication device. The CIA launched a deception campaign to confuse Iranian forces, and when two extraction aircraft became stuck, the U.S. destroyed them and flew in three replacement planes to complete the rescue.

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