Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s office pressed the two crew members of an F-15 shot down over Iran to speak with 60 Minutes for the program’s 59th-season premiere, according to a new report.
CNN reported that Hegseth took an unusually direct role in efforts to secure the interviews.
After both airmen initially voiced reservations, Hegseth reportedly met with them privately and asked whether they wanted to participate rather than ordering them to do so, sources told the network.
One of the airmen nevertheless expressed concern that he could be compelled to take part, according to the report.
Three of CNN’s multiple sources said military officials feared the interview could reveal classified information about the rescue operation.
However, two sources said political appointees in Hegseth’s office were adamant that both crew members appear on the program.
According to CNN, Hegseth’s private meeting persuaded one of the men to participate. The other reportedly continued to decline.
The interview with the unnamed weapon systems officer, who spent two days injured and alone in Iran in April, will air Sunday.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth reportedly took an unusually direct role in his office’s effort to secure interviews with the two crew members of an F-15 shot down over Iran in April, according to a CNN report published Saturday.
![Sources told the network Hegseth 'met privately with [both airmen] and asked whether they wanted to participate rather than forcing their cooperation' after each initially expressed reservations about doing the interview, with only one ultimately accepting](https://i.dailymail.com/1s/2026/09/12/22/111212551-16126473-image-a-9_1789248061070.jpg)
Sources told CNN that Hegseth met privately with both airmen and asked whether they wished to participate after they initially expressed reservations. Only one ultimately agreed.
A press release issued Tuesday described the appearance as the colonel’s “first public account of what happened.”
The weapon systems officer, identified only by the call sign “Bravo,” tells correspondent Norah O’Donnell in a promotional clip: “That day was just another day in the war for us.
“Until the moment we got hit by an Iranian weapon.”
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He recalled that he and the other airman quickly “hit the ground going somewhere between 70 and 100 miles an hour.”
The two were separated after the incident, and his partner, a pilot identified by the call sign “Alpha,” was rescued within hours.
The colonel, meanwhile, hid in a mountain crevice and evaded Iranian forces for two days before rescuers reached him.
CNN noted that several outlets, including CNN, mounted an aggressive effort to interview the crew members after the incident.
Three sources said Hegseth and his staff became highly enthusiastic about broadcasting a dramatic account featuring both crew members after CBS News Editor-in-Chief Bari Weiss approached them.
The report also accused the secretary of helping shape the narrative surrounding the Iran war as public opposition to the conflict grows.
The interview with the unnamed weapon systems officer, who spent two days injured behind enemy lines in April, will air Sunday.
The ejected seat from the US aircraft is shown. The airman spent nearly 50 hours hiding in a mountain crevice with only a handgun for protection before his rescue.
The Pentagon has strongly rejected the report, calling the “entire story” a “complete lie.”
Chief Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell told CNN in a statement: “The decision to participate in the interview was each pilot’s alone — because it is their story.”
“As CNN notes, one pilot decided to participate and one did not. Additionally, the Department took great care to ensure operational security, sources, and methods were protected.
“To suggest otherwise is to denigrate every member of our military who participated in and supported the interview.”
The Daily Mail contacted CBS News for comment. Weiss took over her position in October and recently supervised a major overhaul of 60 Minutes.
CNN reported that newly appointed executive producer Nick Bilton also spoke with Hegseth during the process of arranging the interview. The episode will include an interview with the secretary as well as one with US Central Command chief Brad Cooper.
