F-35 Had To Maneuver To Evade Houthi Surface-To-Air Missile: U.S. Official
A U.S. F-35 stealth fighter had to take evasive maneuvers to avoid being hit by Houthi surface-to-air (SAM) missiles, a U.S. official told The War Zone.
'They got close enough that the [F-35] had to maneuver,' the official said.
You can read more about the Houthis' air defense capabilities in our deep dive here.
The comments partially confirm earlier reporting by The New York Times about what transpired during the U.S. campaign against the Houthis, known as Operation Rough Rider, that was launched March 15.
'In those first 30 days, the Houthis shot down seven American MQ-9 drones (around $30 million each), hampering Central Command's ability to track and strike the militant group,' the publication reported on Monday. 'Several American F-16s and an F-35 fighter jet were nearly struck by Houthi air defenses, making real the possibility of American casualties, multiple U.S. officials said.
Lots of interesting takeaways from this piece, but the winner has to be "multiple US officials" confirming the Houthis nearly shot down an F-35, the most advanced aircraft ever built. https://t.co/4X2rgWe0FK pic.twitter.com/z22LjErPsn
— Gregory Brew (@gbrew24) May 12, 2025
The U.S. official we spoke with could not confirm that the F-16s came under fire.
'There is no indication that F-16s were targeted or anything got close to them during Operation Rough Rider, where they had to maneuver,' said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss operational details. 'That doesn't mean it didn't happen.'
The exact date of the incident was not provided. Also unclear is whether the F-35 in question was an Air Force variant or one flown by the Navy or Marines. While F-35As from Hill Air Force Base arrived in the Middle East in March, the U.S. Navy aircraft carrier Carl Vinson, which is in the region, operates F-35C variants.
Aircraft Carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70) with its air wing consisting of F-35C Lightning IIs works alongside the USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75) in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility. pic.twitter.com/c2p4yxmBpj
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) April 10, 2025
In addition to the F-35 near-miss, the U.S. Navy aircraft carrier Harry S. Truman lost two F/A 18 Super Hornets.
On May 6, a Super Hornet crashed into the sea during its attempt to land. Both the pilot and the Weapon System Officer (WSO) were able to eject and were recovered by helicopter with only minor injuries. TWZ confirmed that the arrestment failed on touch down and the jet careened off the deck. MH-60 Seahawk squadron HSC-11 made the rescue and the F/A-18F Super Hornet was from VFA-11, the Red Rippers.
That was the second loss of a Super Hornet from the carrier in just a week. The other loss occurred while the vessel was evading a Houthi attack, with the Super Hornet rolling off the deck into the sea. Fortunately, nobody was hurt in that incident.
UPDATE: A US official said that initial reports from the scene indicated that the Truman made a hard turn to evade Houthi fire, which contributed to the fighter jet falling overboard. https://t.co/TqrvCDUy3T https://t.co/2NFimBjl0A
— Natasha Bertrand (@NatashaBertrand) April 28, 2025
These incidents have all come amid the Rough Rider campaign that U.S. President Donald Trump halted on May 8. The operation 'has cost America more than $1 billion since March, including the thousands of bombs and missiles used in strikes,' NBC News reported at the time.
'A White House spokeswoman, Anna Kelly, said in a statement to The New York Times that 'President Trump successfully delivered a cease-fire, which is another good deal for America and our security,'' the publication reported in its May 12 story. 'She added that the U.S. military had carried out more than 1,100 strikes, killing hundreds of Houthi fighters and destroying their weapons and equipment.'
.@POTUS: 'Following repeated attacks on American ships and freedom of navigation in the Red Sea, the United States military launched more than 1,100 strikes on the Houthis in Yemen. As a result, the Houthis agreed to stop… We hit them hard, we got what we came for, and then, we… pic.twitter.com/eqSzYpU04Z
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) May 13, 2025
However, so 'many precision munitions were being used, especially advanced long-range ones, that some Pentagon contingency planners were growing increasingly concerned about overall stocks and the implications for any situation in which the United States might have to ward off an attempted invasion of Taiwan by China,' the Times explained.
'By Day 31, Mr. Trump, ever leery of drawn-out military entanglements in the Middle East, demanded a progress report, according to administration officials,' the Times added. 'But the results were not there. The United States had not even established air superiority over the Houthis. Instead, what was emerging after 30 days of a stepped-up campaign against the Yemeni group was another expensive but inconclusive American military engagement in the region.'
The War Zone cannot confirm the conclusions drawn in the New York Times piece.
'The culmination of the ceasefire accord underscored how quickly the Trump administration moved on initial intelligence to secure what in March seemed unthinkable to many experts in the short term: a Houthi declaration it would stop striking U.S. ships,' Reuters reported Tuesday. 'Trump's unconventional approach included bypassing close U.S. ally Israel, which is not covered by the agreement, and which was not told ahead of time, an Israeli official and a person familiar with the matter said.'
As we previously reported, Operation Rough Rider included the use of U.S. Air Force B-2A Spirit stealth bombers to attack Houthi targets in Yemen. You can read more about the deployment of B-2s to the remote Indian Ocean island of Diego Garcia here.
All told, Operation Rough Rider attacks 'have destroyed multiple command-and-control facilities, air defense systems, advanced weapons manufacturing facilities, and advanced weapons storage locations,' CENTCOM said in an April 27 post on X. 'These storage facilities housed advanced conventional weapons, including anti-ship ballistic and cruise missiles, unmanned aerial systems, and uncrewed surface vessels, which were employed in Houthi terrorist attacks on international shipping lanes.'
https://t.co/UKfMeWG6OR
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) April 27, 2025
Trump ordered Operation Rough Rider in response to Houthi attacks on Red Sea-area shipping. They began in November 2023 in solidarity with Palestinians over the latest war between Israel and Gaza. They have forced ships to avoid the Suez Canal for a far longer route around Africa, boosting cargo costs by nearly $200 billion. The Houthis' attacks sank two vessels, damaged many others, caused the death of four mariners, and led to many being held hostage after a ship was seized. There were also a lot of Houthi weapons that missed their targets entirely. In addition to attacking shipping, the Houthis have also fired missiles and drones at Israel. You can read more about the Houthis' arsenal in our deep dive here.
'Houthi terrorists have launched missiles and one-way attack drones at U.S. warships over 170 times, and at commercial vessels 145 times since 2023,' Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell told reporters at a March 17 press conference.
The Houthis have attacked US warships 174 times & commercial vessels 145 times since 2023.They put American lives at risk.The previous administration let this go on for years with next to no response.Under President Trump & Secretary Hegseth's leadership, that ends now.
— Sean Parnell (@SeanParnellATSD) March 15, 2025
The fact that even the Houthis, with their relatively rudimentary air defenses, were able to keep many U.S. aircraft from making direct attacks, with a heavy reliance on valuable standoff weapons and even stealth bombers instead, certainly has broader implications that we will be exploring further in future articles.
Contact the author: howard@thewarzone.com
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