A report on History of Iranian military aviation, Iran–Iraq War and Northrop F-5

Top-left to bottom-right: Iranian child soldier on the frontlines

Iranian soldier in a trench wearing a gas mask to guard against Iraqi chemical attacks

Port quarter view of the USS Stark listing to port after being mistakenly struck by an Iraqi warplane

Pro-Iraq MEK forces killed during Iran's Operation Mersad

Iraqi prisoners of war after the recapture of Khorramshahr by Iranian forces

ZU-23-2 anti-aircraft gun being used by the Iranian Army

Eight major officers of the IIAF, in the 1930s.

Meeting of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, Houari Boumédiène and Saddam Hussein (left to right) during the Algiers Agreement in 1975.

An F-86 Sabre from the Golden Crown aerobatic display team, of the Imperial Iranian Air Force.

Ruhollah Khomeini rose to power after the Iranian Revolution.

CH-47C Chinook of the Imperial Iranian Air Force at Issy heliport, Paris, in 1971.

Location of Khuzestan Province in Iran which Iraq planned to annex

Official roll-out of first USAF F-5E Tiger II

The first F-4D Phantom II squadron of Iran, 1971.

Iranian President Abolhassan Banisadr, who was also commander-in-chief, on a Jeep-mounted 106mm recoilless anti-tank gun. Banisadr was impeached in June 1981.

F-5E Tiger II with B83 nuclear bomb at Hill Aerospace Museum

Two F-14 Tomcats equipped with multiple missiles, circa 1986

The Shatt al-Arab on the Iran–Iraq border

The first squadron of Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force F-14 Tomcat pilots, at Shiraz Air Base.

NASA F-5E modified for DARPA sonic boom tests

Iranian F-14A Tomcats equipped with AIM-54A, AIM-7 and AIM-9 missiles.

Resistance of the outnumbered and outgunned Iranians in Khorramshahr slowed the Iraqis for a month.

USAF F-5F with AIM-9J Sidewinder, AGM-65 Maverick missiles and auxiliary fuel tanks over Edwards Air Force Base, 1976.

Iranian president Abulhassan Banisadr on the battlefront

A former Swiss F-5N in service with U.S. Navy aggressor squadron VFC-111

A Boeing 707 of the Imperial Iranian Air Force refuels a Boeing 747 of the IIAF.

Iraqi President Saddam Hussein and Massoud Rajavi, the leader of MEK and the National Resistance Council of Iran (NCRI) in 1988.

F-5A Freedom Fighters of Imperial Iranian Air Force

The surprise attack on H-3 airbase is considered to be one of the most sophisticated air operations of the war.

An F-5E of the Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force

Iranian soldier holding an IV bag during the Iran–Iraq War

Northrop RF-5E Tigereye of the Royal Malaysian Air Force at RMAF Butterworth

Iranian Northrop F-5 aircraft during Iran-Iraq war

Mexican Air Force F-5 Tiger flying near the Popocatepetl volcano

Iraqi T-62 tank wreckage in Khuzestan Province, Iran

Iraqi soldiers surrendering after the Liberation of Khorramshahr

NF-5A air display in the skies over the island of Terschelling

Northrop F-5A(G) flight deck displayed in the Norwegian Armed Forces Aircraft Collection. Serial no. 208 (66-9208)

An admonitory declaration issued from the Iraqi government in order to warn Iranian troops in the Iran–Iraq War. The statement says: "Hey Iranians! No one has been downtrodden in the country where Ali ibn Abi Ṭālib, Husayn ibn Ali and Abbas ibn Ali are buried. Iraq has undoubtedly been an honorable country. All refugees are precious. Anyone who wants to live in exile can choose Iraq freely. We, the Sons of Iraq, have been ambushing foreign aggressors. The enemies who plan to assault Iraq will be disfavoured by God in this world and the hereafter. Be careful of attacking Iraq and Ali ibn Abi Ṭālib! If you surrender, you might be in peace."

Philippine Air Force F-5A at Clark Air Base, c. 1982

95,000 Iranian child soldiers were made casualties during the Iran–Iraq War, mostly between the ages of 16 and 17, with a few younger.

A Maverick-armed F-5S Tiger II of Republic of Singapore Air Force on static display at Paya Lebar Air Base

A Republic of China (Taiwan) Air Force F-5F Tiger II at Songshan Air base

An F-5C at Museum of Ho Chi Minh Campaign, Vietnam. This jet flown by South Vietnamese pilot Nguyen Thanh Trung, who defected to North Vietnam after bombing the presidential palace of South Vietnam in Saigon, on 8 April 1975.

Iraqi POW who was shot by Iranian troops after they conquered the Iraqi Majnoon oil field in October 1984

RTAF F-5 and USAF F-15 in the background

Iranian troops fire 152 mm D-20 howitzer

A trio of USAF aggressor squadron F-5Es in formation

Battle of the Marshes Iran front 1983 rest after exchange of fire 152 mm D-20 H

Operation Earnest Will: Tanker convoy No. 12 under US Navy escort (21 October 1987)

Chilean F-5F Tiger II just after delivery in 1977

A map indicating the attacks on civilian areas of Iran, Iraq, and Kuwait targeted during the "War of the Cities".

A Spanish F-5M Freedom Fighter at Dijon Air Base

Iraqi commanders discussing strategy on the battlefront (1986)

Swiss F-5F with Ericson Vista 5 radar jammer

Iranian President Ali Khamenei on the battlefront during the Iran–Iraq War

Operation Dawn 8 during which Iran captured the Faw Peninsula.

Iranian soldier killed during the Iran–Iraq War with Rouhollah Khomeini's photo on his uniform

The People's Mujahedin of Iran, supported by Saddam, started a ten-day operation after both the Iranian and Iraqi governments accepted UN Resolution 598. Casualty estimates range from 2,000 to 10,000.

Northrop F-5 operators (former operators in red) as of 2020

Adnan Khairallah, Iraqi Defense Minister, meeting with Iraqi soldiers during the war

IRGC navy speedboats using swarm tactics

The 46th Tactical Fighter Squadron (Aggressor squadron) F-5E 5272 of Republic of China Air Force exhibited on the apron of Zhi-Hang Air Base

An Iranian soldier wearing a gas mask during the Iran–Iraq War.

Kenya Air Force F-5E Tiger II and a USAF C-5 Galaxy in the background

The Iranian frigate IS Sahand burns after being hit by 20 U.S. air launched missiles and bombs, killing a third of the crew, April 1988

Royal Moroccan Air Force F-5E Tiger II during an aerial refueling mission in exercise African Lion 2009

Iranian soldiers captured during Iraq's 1988 offensives

F-5E/F Tiger II of the Indonesian Air Force preserved at the Dirgantara Mandala Museum, Yogyakarta

USS Vincennes in 1987 a year before it shot down Iran Air Flight 655

MEK Soldiers killed in Operation Mersad in 1988

Al-Shaheed Monument in Baghdad was erected to commemorate the fallen Iraqi soldiers during the war.

F-5E Tiger II of the Swiss Patrouille Suisse aerobatics team arrives for the 2014 Royal International Air Tattoo, Fairford, England. Its '50' markings commemorates the team's 50 years of flying (1964–2014).

A Royal Thai Air Force Northrop F-5E Tiger II

NF-5A of the Turkish Stars aerobatic team.

An Iranian soldier's funeral in Mashhad, 2013

A retired Royal Thai Air Force F-5B in front of wing 23 gate Udon Thani International Airport

An Iraqi Mil Mi-24 on display at the military museum of Sa'dabad Palace in Iran

Indonesian Air Force F-5E Tiger II of the Skadron Udara 14 at Dirgantara Mandala Museum Yogyakarta

President Ronald Reagan and Vice President George H. W. Bush work in the Oval Office of the White House, 20 July 1984.

F-5B in Royal Thai Air Force Museum, the first F-5B produced

USS Stark (FFG-31) listing following two hits by Exocet missiles.

RTAF F-5E at Royal Thai Air Force Museum

Victims of the 1987 chemical attack on Sardasht, West Azerbaijan, Iran

Damage to a mosque in Khoramshahr, Iran, the city that was invaded by Iraq in September 1980

M39A2 cannon in the right side of the nose of an F-5E

USMC F-5N Tiger IIs from VMFT-401 on standby at the Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort

F-5 Tiger II of the Royal Malaysian Air Force

A Republic of Singapore Air Force F-5S Tiger II taking off from Korat Air Base

Venezuela Air Force Northrop (Canadair) VF-5A (CL-226)

A Bahraini Air Force F-5F on the taxiway at RAF Alconbury

A South Korean Air Force KF-5E takes off

After the 1979 Iranian revolution, some of these planes were not in working order due to a lack of necessary spare parts, because of an American arms embargo and damage sustained on the aircraft during the Iraqi invasion (Iran–Iraq War).

- History of Iranian military aviation

While a welcome reinforcement, these types never replaced the older, U.S.-built F-4 Phantoms or F-14 Tomcats (now the only air arm in the world to continue using the fighter), or even Northrop F-5 Tiger IIs.

- History of Iranian military aviation

The only qualms the Iraqis had were over the Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force (formerly the Imperial Iranian Air Force).

- Iran–Iraq War

Groups of F-4 Phantom and F-5 Tiger fighter jets attacked targets throughout Iraq, such as oil facilities, dams, petrochemical plants, and oil refineries, and included Mosul Airbase, Baghdad, and the Kirkuk oil refinery.

- Iran–Iraq War

The Imperial Iranian Air Force (IIAF) received extensive U.S. equipment in the 1960s and 1970s.

- Northrop F-5

After the Iranian revolution in 1979, the new Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force (IRIAF) was partially successful at keeping Western fighters in service during the Iran–Iraq War in the 1980s and the simple F-5 had a good service readiness until late in the war.

- Northrop F-5

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Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force

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Aviation branch of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army.

A P-3F Orion of the Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force

Iran Air Forces training in Tehran, 2014

An Su-24MK of the IRIAF flying over Shahid Dastghaib International Airport

A MiG-29 on the tarmac at Dezful Airport

The present air force came into being when the Imperial Iranian Air Force was renamed in 1979 following the Iranian Revolution.

The IRIAF was heavily involved in the Iran–Iraq War, carrying out major operations like Operation Kaman 99, Operation Sultan 10, the H-3 airstrike, and the first attack on a nuclear reactor in history, Operation Scorch Sword.

Simultaneously, Iran began construction of two domestically produced fighters, upgraded using technology from the F-14 Tomcat and the F-5 Tiger II.