Carol Platt Liebau: Why This Mission Mattered

Tuesday, April 7, 2026

It’s a story that fills you with a very American kind of pride. In a risky and costly operation, the US rescued the missing pilot who had been shot down over Iran.

The operation involved hundreds of intelligence and military personnel, Navy SEAL Team Six, Army Delta Force, CIA operatives who carried out a deception campaign, even the destruction of two damaged aircraft, all to find one man.

Some questioned why America would go to such extraordinary lengths just to recover a single pilot. Of course, we wanted to deny Iran a propaganda victory and access to any intelligence the pilot possessed, but there’s more to it than that.

We come from a Judeo‑Christian worldview. We believe every life is precious. We honor our fighting men and women, and we don’t leave any of them behind.

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