The Air Force weapon systems officer whose daring rescue by special operations forces captivated the United States over the weekend signaled to his saviors by waving his stars-and-stripes-patterned boxer shorts, a defense contractor familiar with the mission told The High Side.

As Iranian militiamen closed in, the airman was rescued after a two-day ordeal by operators from Joint Special Operations Command, which includes secretive but famous special mission units such as the Navy’s SEAL Team 6 and the Army’s Delta Force. The JSOC operators were available because they had deployed to the region for a completely different mission.