History

On Feb. 25, 1925 (5 Esfand-1304) the first Iranian pilot Colonel Ahmad Khan Nakhjavan, who was trained in France with Colonel Yadolah Azam Zangeneh (Mrs. Farah Jahanbani's Father and General Nader Jahanbani's Father in Law ) with only 200 Hours of flight experience, flew a Breguet-19 with the Iranian Flag and Insignia on it from France to Iran's Ghale-Morghi Airport where Reza Khan Mirpanj (Later Reza Shah The Great) personally greeted them. Thus, on this date, the first Iranian Air Force Aircraft piloted by Iranian Pilot crossed international borders and entered the Iranian Airspace*****.
Purchasing the aircraft was the easy part. Training the pilots to fly them, the ground crew to maintain and repair them, and building the airports were the hardest parts and required time. Also, during this period, the Air Force was changed from a small office in the Army to a separate department called the Imperial Iranian Air Force.
Colonel Ahmad Khan Nakhjavan became the first Air Force Commander.
In 1924 (1303), the first group of student pilots and Mechanics were sent to Russia and France for training. Later, in 1929 (1308), the Iranian Air Force had a total of 15 pilots, of which 6 had graduated from Easter Flying School (France) and 9 from Sebastopol Flying School (Russia). At this time, the IIAF had a total of 33 aircraft of 9 different models.
During the next 15 Years (up to World War II), over 400 Aircraft of 18 different models from 4 Countries were in the IIAF Service. The 8 air bases built at this time included pilot training, instructor pilot schools, and a maintenance training school. An Aircraft factory, "Shahbaz," was also established and would build 3 different types of aircraft.
At the beginning of the WWII, Iran remained a neutral country. However, on Aug. 23, 1941 (3 Shahrivar, 1320), during the heat of WWII, Iranian neutrality was broken, and Iran was attacked from the air and the sea—the British from the South and the Russians from the North.
(It was called Operation "Y" under the command of Lt. Gen. E.P. Quinan).
The young Iranian Air Force, which had just begun to build its foundation, was in no condition to withstand such a heavy attack. The Allied Forces of Britain and Russia took control of two Iranian air bases in Tehran.
The British took over the Dooshan Tappeh IIAF complex, including Shahbaz factories, and the Russians took over control of Ghale Morghi Air Base.
The invaders closed the IIAF Technical Officers Academy, the pilot training school, the maintenance school, and six air bases in the country. Personnel were dismissed from service, and most of the aircraft were dismantled ( Some Air Force personnel witnessed that our aircraft were cut into half by British troops to make them useless).
Of 15 Curtiss H75 A-9 Hawk Aircrafts that Iran had purchased from the USA and were delivered on May 1941, 10 were ready to fly (SN 15252 to 15261 and the other 5 were still in boxes. The British also took all these aircraft and shipped them to India!!!
The young Air Force was reduced to practically nothing! The British and Russian forces destroyed the Iranian Air Force built by H.I.M. Reza Shah The Great during their occupation from 1941 to 1946. Reza Shah, the founder of the Air Force, was forced to resign as part of the cease-fire condition imposed by the British. Eventually, his son, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, became the Shah of Iran.
When the war ended, the British left Iran, but the Russians refused to leave and remained in control of Northern Iran.
In 1946 (21 Azar, 1325), encouraged by the political pressure applied by the American Government, the Army and Air Force, under the direct command of the young Mohammad Reza Shah ((( Only 40 Days After receiving his Pilot Certificate and having less than 100 flying hours, the Shah of Iran made four Reconnaissance Flight over enemy territory; this was the first time that the leader of a country would participate and fly over a war zone.))) drove the Red Russians and the "puppet" government of "Pishehwari" out of Iran.
Iran's economy was weakened due to this occupation and the war. The country was experiencing severe recession, unemployment, and disrepair during Russia's occupation. Depressed crude oil prices (less than $1.00 per barrel) imposed by the large Western oil companies prevented Iran from being able to purchase arms and re-equip the Armed forces.
The country struggled for ten years! However, these obstacles would not prevent the Air Force from returning to the course of progress.
Finally, the United States decided to help equip the Iranian Air Force. The Cold War between the East and the West after WWII was the main reason for this decision. The Western allies (mainly the United States) wanted to build a cushion between the Russians and the warm waters of the Persian Gulf—the gateway to the wealth of the Middle East oil fields.
The first priority, however, was to build strong, defensive armed forces in Iran and Turkey. Therefore, the USA equipped IIAF with P-47s, RT/33 (reconnaissance aircraft), F-84s, and F-86s as part of their Military Assistance Program (MAP).
The British also stepped in by providing the IIAF with "Anson" and "Hurricane" aircraft and certain Radars. However, the British share did not come for free; it stemmed from compensations that they had to make for destroying the IIAF aircraft fleet, The Imperial Iranian Naval fleet, and utilization of Shahbaz factories, which they used to support their own aircraft fleet during WWII while occupying Iran. Of course, it must also be mentioned that the British had "windfall" access to the extended Iranian Oil fields, Abadan Oil Refinery (the largest in the world at the time), and the Iranian ports in the Persian Gulf region that were part and parcel of British Imperialism, which the Iranians had to contend with. Other British motives to assist Iran at the time were linked with the Cold War, a military pact with Iran and her neighboring countries("Baghdad Pact" later on "Cento Pact"), and the creation of a permanent market for their weapons in Iran.