<p>Former CENTCOM Commander and retired Marine Corps Gen. Frank McKenzie praised the efficiency of the American military&#8217;s rescue operation to retrieve a downed weapon systems operator (WSO) after his plane went down in Iran.</p>
<p>McKenzie spoke with CBS News anchor Ed O&#8217;Keefe on &#8220;Face the Nation,&#8221; where he said it was important to note that U.S. military forces had been able to get to him first — even though the Iranian regime had offered a reward to anyone who could help them locate him before the United States was able to pull off a rescue mission.</p>
<p><strong>WATCH:</strong></p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p dir="ltr" lang="en">The mission to rescue the missing U.S. airman In Iran was “executed pretty effectively,” former CENTCOM commander Ret. Gen. Frank McKenzie says.</p>
<p>“It takes a year to build an aircraft and it takes 200 years to build a military tradition where you don&#8217;t leave anybody behind.”… <a href="https://t.co/rZZy9OA0Us">pic.twitter.com/rZZy9OA0Us</a></p>
<p>— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) <a href="https://twitter.com/FaceTheNation/status/2040806763054645554?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 5, 2026</a></p></blockquote>
<p>&#8220;So, it took just under 48 hours to find the missing weapon systems officer,&#8221; O&#8217;Keefe began, noting that the area where the plane had gone down was very remote and the terrain was uneven. &#8220;What&#8217;s your assessment of how the search and rescue operation went?&#8221;</p>
<p>McKenzie said that there were &#8220;two lessons&#8221; that he would take from the way the rescue operations had played out: &#8220;First of all, the excellence of the joint force, our ability to rapidly pivot to look for a downed air crewman. We train for this endlessly, it&#8217;s a part of every time we send air crew over enemy territory, we have detailed, elaborate plans to go get them.&#8221;</p>
<p>&#8220;It&#8217;s a very basic part of who we are as American fighting men and women,&#8221; he added, saying that the plan had been &#8220;executed pretty effectively&#8221; as far as he could see.</p>
<p>Acknowledging the planes that were lost in pursuit of the rescue mission, McKenzie argued that the man on the ground would always take precedence: &#8220;It takes a year to build an aircraft and it takes 200 years to build a military tradition where you don&#8217;t leave anybody behind. You take the aircraft trade any day in a situation like this.&#8221;</p>
<p>The second lesson, according to McKenzie, was one for Iran – that the people might not be as eager to help the regime as they had hoped. Even after a reward was offered for help in locating the missing American airman, the Iranian regime was unable to prevent the rescue mission from ending in success.</p>
<p>&#8220;You can&#8217;t be happy with that if you&#8217;re a senior leader in Tehran this morning,&#8221; he said.</p>

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Former CENTCOM Chief Drops A Line That Hits At The Heart Of Military Honor

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Former CENTCOM Chief Drops A Line That Hits At The Heart Of Military Honor