Just as a non-anecdotal proof [0] that just because it's counter-intuitive doesn't mean it's not correct. Sometimes it's the most obvious absence of evidence that shouts the loudest. Looking at those planes there was absolutely no proof that some parts ever get hit and it would be crazy to even suggest that they do. Based on what evidence?

The US tends to come out with almost no bullet holes from SA and Israel but when one is found it's a howitzer. Every time something related to them really blows up you get to how deep they went and it becomes almost unbelievable to assume there were no signs whatsoever to the US and no reporting could have been done by the media.

WaPo has a vested interest in covering SA especially after Khashoggi and the Bezos blackmail incident. But the US and rest of the media are not as vocal as say when talking about anything related to China or Iran, where every piece of gossip is news, where every allegation becomes a sanction. The point to take from here is that "punishment fitting the crime" seems to be a very fluid concept also at country level and the questions to worry about are "Why are some getting a free pass? What are the strings?".

[0] https://www.motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2010/09/counterintuit...