Satellite image captures decades-old US-made F-5 jets at an Iranian airbase, offering a snapshot of Tehran’s vintage air force

A new satellite image taken of an Iranian airbase showed a handful of decades-old, American-made F-5 fighter jets, offering a look at Tehran’s antiquated air force.

The photo, captured Tuesday by US commercial satellite imaging company Maxar Technologies and obtained by Business Insider amid Israeli strikes on Iranian military assets, showed six F-5s on alert and dispersed around the Dezful airbase in western Iran.

The section of the base did not appear to have been targeted by Israel, which has spent the past six days launching airstrikes against Iranian nuclear and military facilities. The intensive bombing campaign has caused widespread damage across the country and killed a number of senior commanders.

There are several variants of the F-5 supersonic light fighter made by the US aircraft manufacturer Northrop Corporation. The early F-5 took its first flight in the late 1950s and was introduced the following decade.

The US procured thousands of these aircraft for use by allies. Iran, once an American ally, acquired F-5A/B Freedom Fighters and F-5E/F Tiger IIs in the 1960s and 1970s, building its air force before the 1979 Iranian Revolution tanked relations between the two countries, ending logistical, maintenance, and technological support.

Iran is estimated to have had a few dozen F-5s in service in recent years, with many of the originally purchased fighter jets non-operational or long since disposed of amid strains on maintaining the aircraft. The US military, specifically the Air Force and Navy, still uses the jet for training purposes, though not for active combat operations.

Iran’s air force is fairly outdated and obsolete due to international sanctions and other embargoes that prevent the country from obtaining more high-tech weaponry but also critical components and parts. Aside from the F-5, Tehran operates other aging aircraft, including the Soviet-era Su-24 and MiG-29, and the American-made F-14 Tomcat.

An Iranian official said earlier this year that Tehran had purchased newer Su-35 aircraft from Russia, but it’s unclear how many, if any, have been delivered.

The Israel Defense Forces said on Monday that it had bombed two F-14s at Tehran’s main airport, marking what it described as “another loss of strategic weaponry for the enemy.” The IDF also confirmed on Wednesday that it struck five Iranian attack helicopters.

Limited in its airpower, Iran has invested heavily in developing a large arsenal of ballistic missiles and attack drones.

By contrast, the Israeli Air Force operates newer and more powerful aircraft, such as the F-35I stealth fighter and the older but highly effective F-16 and F-15 jets. Israeli officials said that the country has, with its mix of fourth- and fifth-generation fighters, achieved air superiority over swaths of Iran, including Tehran, after battering its air defenses.

Amid fighting between Israel and Iran, another image captured by Maxar on Tuesday showed what appeared to be several of Iran’s Shahed-136 attack drones on and next to trailers parked on a taxiway at Dezful.

Iran has used its notorious Shahed-136s in its ongoing retaliatory attacks against Israel. Tehran has also sent many of these drones, also described as loitering munitions, to Russia, which has used them to carry out strikes on Ukrainian cities and civilian infrastructure. Russia also produces its own domestic version of the Shahed-136, which has increasingly become a problem for Ukraine.

Israeli combat aircraft have launched hundreds of airstrikes across Iran since Friday, targeting the country’s nuclear program, its leading scientists, senior commanders, air defenses, missile launchers, weapons production sites, bases, and other military infrastructure.

Iran has, in turn, retaliated against Israel by launching around 400 ballistic missiles and hundreds of drones.

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