Actually, those pilots are most likely dead . The the distance between the crash site and the extraction point was 100 KM. There is no way that pilot made it that far . The Espehan commando raid was not about pilot rescue , but the enriched uranium.
It failed miserably. There are plenty of discussions about the topic from former Navy seals and Delta guys.
There is

without any doubt that the American causualties are much much greater than the 24 ( if you count the helicopter pilots and staged crashes) .
American do not disclose their dead if they are from special forces units.
They operate thousands of mercenaries from companies like Blackwater and many others .