Israel has dealt a major blow to Iran’s air power with two strikes in quick succession. First, 16 Quds Force aircraft were destroyed at Tehran’s Mehrabad Airport. Then, Iranian F-14 fighter jets were hit at Isfahan airport. Together, these strikes leave Iran with very little modern air capability to respond with.
The Israel Defense Forces announced that several Iranian F-14 jets were destroyed in the Isfahan strike. According to Iran International, these jets were originally supplied to Iran before the 1979 Islamic Revolution, making them decades old. Israel also targeted Iran’s detection and air defense systems in the same strike, clearing the way for future operations.
The Isfahan strike followed a larger operation two days earlier at Mehrabad Airport in Tehran, where 16 aircraft belonging to the Quds Force were destroyed. The Quds Force is the branch of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps that handles overseas military operations. According to the Israeli military, Mehrabad Airport was used as a hub to move weapons and cash to Iran-backed armed groups across the Middle East, including Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Iran’s outdated air fleet and lack of modern defenses make it highly vulnerable to further Israeli strikes
The Israeli military said the strikes are part of a broader effort to strengthen their control of the skies over Iran. They also stated that precision munitions, aerial surveillance, and other intelligence were used to reduce harm to civilians before carrying out the operations. Back in the US, Republicans blocked efforts to limit Trump’s Iran war powers, though two GOP lawmakers broke ranks and surprised their own party.
Iran’s air force has long been weakened by sanctions and a lack of access to modern parts. Before these strikes, Iran’s fleet included 65 F-4s, 35 F-5s, 41 F-14s, 18 MiG-29s, 21 Su-24s, and 12 Mirage F1s, along with a small number of tankers and special-mission aircraft. Iran has also received some Yak-130 light attack aircraft recently, but these are not a match for modern air power.
Iran also has no modern airborne early-warning fleet, which means it cannot manage an air battle the way the US and Israel can, using platforms like the E-3 or E-2. On top of that, US and Israeli forces fly stealth aircraft like B-2 bombers and F-35 fighters, putting enormous pressure on Iran’s ability to get its own planes in the air safely.
The ongoing conflict has also taken a deep human toll, as families of soldiers killed in the Iran conflict have spoken out with emotional tributes, with one remark from Pete Hegseth drawing significant outrage. Given this gap in capabilities, Iran has relied heavily on unmanned systems.
Iran has been using one-way attack drones against bases, ports, airports, and energy infrastructure across the Gulf region. The UAE alone reported detecting 812 drones and intercepting 755, though 57 still got through and caused damage. Kuwait intercepted 283 drones.
Even if Iran could get some jets and helicopters airborne, using them against US and Israeli forces would carry enormous risk. For the foreseeable future, Iran appears to have no real choice but to rely almost entirely on drones and missiles as its main tools in the air.
Published: Mar 8, 2026 01:45 pm