Military
A 50-Year-Old American-Made Fighter Jet in Iran's Arsenal Still Exceeds 1,500 MPH
Robert Sullivan / Public Domain / Flickr
Published: October 23, 2024 10:10 am
Iran has fired over 180 missiles into Israel as tensions mount in the region. Iran announced it was in response to Israel’s attacks against Hezbollah, which is an Iranian-backed militant group. Israel reported that its defense system effectively stopped many of the missiles. (These are the fighter jets and attack helicopters of the Israeli Air Force. )
24/7 Wall St. is taking a closer look at Iran’s Air Force. To identify the fastest Iranian combat aircraft currently in service, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the 2024 World Air Forces report from FlightGlobal, an aviation and aerospace industry publication. We ordered these aircraft by top speed and we included combat helicopters as well. We also included supplemental data on the type of aircraft, active aircraft, armament, and which Iranian military branch they serve under.
Here is a look at the fastest fighter jets and combat helicopters currently in service in Iran:
Why Are We Covering This?
Valery Evlakhov / Shutterstock.com
Understanding the combat aircraft within Iran’s arsenal gives context to what the country is capable of in terms of its military. Recent tensions on the geopolitical stage raise the question of military strength within the region.
Shadman Samee / Wikimedia Commons
Type: Light utility helicopter
Year introduced: 1967
Military branch: Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force, Islamic Republic of Iran Army
Manufacturer: Bell Helicopters
Active aircraft: 5
Top speed: 122 mph
Armament: 7.62mm machine guns
Type: Medium-lift utility / transport helicopter
Year introduced: 1968
Military branch: Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force, Islamic Republic of Iran Navy
Manufacturer: Bell Helicopters
Active aircraft: 10
Top speed: 140 mph
Armament: 7.62mm machine guns
735 Bangladesh Air Force Mil Mi-171 Hip. (41836905645) by Shadman Samee from Dhaka, Bangladesh / BY-SA 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/)
Type: Medium-lift transport helicopter
Year introduced: 1981
Military branch: Islamic Republic of Iran Navy, Iranian Revolutionary Guard
Manufacturer: Mil Moscow Helicopter Plant / Russian Helicopters
Active aircraft: 22
Top speed: 158 mph
Armament: Shturm missiles, rocket pods, 23mm cannon pods, 7.62mm machine guns
File:A Bell 214 of IRIAA.jpg by Shahram Sharifi / BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)
Type: Medium-lift utility helicopter
Year introduced: 1972
Military branch: Islamic Republic of Iran Army
Manufacturer: Bell Helicopters
Active aircraft: 24
Top speed: 162 mph
Armament: 7.62mm machine guns
Type: Anti-submarine warfare helicopter
Year introduced: 1961
Military branch: Islamic Republic of Iran Navy
Manufacturer: Sikorsky
Active aircraft: 8
Top speed: 166 mph
Armament: Mark 44 / 46 torpedoes, anti-ship missiles, naval depth charges, 7.62mm machine guns
Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
Type: Dedicated two-seat attack helicopter
Year introduced: 1970
Military branch: Islamic Republic of Iran Army
Manufacturer: Bell Helicopters
Active aircraft: 13
Top speed: 175 mph
Armament: 20mm M197 triple barrel gatling gun, Hydra rocket pods, Zuni rocket pods, BGM-TOW missiles, Sidewinder missiles
Type: Medium-lift, tandem rotor transport helicopter
Year introduced: 1962
Military branch: Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force, Islamic Republic of Iran Army
Manufacturer: Boeing
Active aircraft: 40
Top speed: 180 mph
Armament: 7.62mm machine guns
Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
Type: Heavy-lift transport helicopter
Year introduced: 1966
Military branch: Islamic Republic of Iran Navy
Manufacturer: Sikorsky
Active aircraft: 6
Top speed: 196 mph
Armament: 12.7mm machine guns, 7.62mm machine guns
Type: Strike fighter
Year introduced: 1970
Military branch: Iranian Revolutionary Guard
Manufacturer: Sukhoi
Active aircraft: 9
Top speed: 718 mph
Armament: 30mm autocannons, conventional drop bombs, guided bombs, rocket pods, gun pods, air-to-air missiles, air-to-surface missiles
my_public_domain_photos / Flickr
Type: Multirole fighter aircraft
Year introduced: 1962
Military branch: Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force
Manufacturer: Northrop Aircraft Corporation
Active aircraft: 35
Top speed: 1,077 mph
Armament: 20mm M39A2 automatic cannons, Sidewinder missiles, Maverick missiles, rocket pods, conventional drop bombs, guided bombs
Type: Interceptor / Strike fighter aircraft
Year introduced: 1980
Military branch: Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force
Manufacturer: Shengyang / Chengdu
Active aircraft: 17
Top speed: 1,367 mph
Armament: 30mm internal cannons, air-to-air missiles, air-to-surface missiles, conventional drop bombs, rocket pods
File:Belarusian Su-24 Fencer at Radom AS 2009.JPG by Bartek Kozłowiec / BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)
Type: Long-range strike / attack aircraft
Year introduced: 1974
Military branch: Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force
Manufacturer: Sukhoi
Active aircraft: 23
Top speed: 1,439 mph
Armament: 23mm GSh internal six-barrel cannon, Aphid missiles, Archer missiles, Kingbolt missiles, Krypton missiles, rocket pods, conventional drop bombs, guided bombs
Type: Interceptor aircraft
Year introduced: 1973
Military branch: Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force
Manufacturer: Dassault
Active aircraft: 12
Top speed: 1,453 mph
Armament: 30mm DEFA internal automatic cannons, Sidewinder missiles, Magic missiles, Matra missiles, conventional drop bombs, rocket pods, Armat missiles
Type: Strike fighter
Year introduced: 1960
Military branch: Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force
Manufacturer: McDonnell Douglas
Active aircraft: 63
Top speed: 1,473 mph
Armament: 20mm M61 Vulcan, Skyflash missiles, Sparrow missiles, Sidewinder missiles, rocket pods, gun pods, conventional drop bombs, guided bombs
Type: Lightweight multirole fighter aircraft
Year introduced: 1984
Military branch: Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force
Manufacturer: Mikoyan / United Aircraft Corporation
Active aircraft: 18
Top speed: 1,519 mph
Armament: 30mm GSh-1 internal automatic cannon, Alamo missiles, Adder missiles, rocket pods, conventional drop bombs, guided bombs
Willard / iStock via Getty Images
Type: Swing-wing, carrier borne fleet defense fighter
Year introduced: 1974
Military branch: Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force
Manufacturer: Grumman Aircraft
Active aircraft: 41
Top speed: 1,544 mph
Armament: 20mm internal gatling gun, Phoenix missiles, Sparrow missiles, Sidewinder missiles, conventional drop bombs, guided bombs
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