An image of an alleged captured Israeli female pilot took off on social media as the war between Israel and Iran grew increasingly turbulent. 

Pro-Iranian accounts on X and Facebook identified the smiling woman in the photo as “Sarah Ahronot,” saying she was “captured in Iran.”

However, PolitiFact performed a reverse image search to find that the pictured woman is Chilean pilot Daniela Figueroa Scholz, who made history in 2021 as the Chilean Navy’s first female pilot.  

An article from Diálogo Américas, a digital military magazine published by U.S. Southern Command, features a higher-resolution version of Scholz’s image that includes her clearly identifiable name on her uniform. 

(Screengrab from X)

Israel attacked Iran on June 13, killing senior military commanders and nuclear scientists, along with an unconfirmed number of civilians, including children. Iran retaliated with missile barrages, striking near homes in the central Israeli city of Rishon Lezion, The Associated Press reported.

The U.S. on June 21 carried out strikes against three nuclear facilities in Iran. Damage assessments are ongoing. 

We found no credible sources supporting the claim that Iran captured an Israeli pilot named Sarah Ahronot. Fact-checkers at NewsGuard found this image and claim were shared by Iranian state media outlets, one in a number of instances in which Iran used misleading information to “inflate (Iran’s) military successes and downplay losses.” 

We rate the claim this photo shows a captured Israeli pilot False.