List of Cold War Pilot Defections - Iran

Iran

  • On 10 July 1983, Iranian defector Captain Iraj Fazeli landed a US-made F-5E Tiger II jet at an airport in Van, one of Turkey's easternmost provinces bordering Iran. The aircraft belonged to TFB.2 at Tabriz.
  • In early 1984, Iranian defectors flew an F-5E to Saudi Arabia (the pilot returned to Iran several years later). In both of these cases, the jets were back in Iran a few weeks later.
  • On 30 August 1984, Iranian pilot Captain Rahman Nageeb defected in his F-4E Phantom II serial 3-6552 to Iraq, and his RIO became a POW who was later released with other prisoners.
  • On 21 July 1985, Iranian pilot Mehdi Babaie and two airmen flew their US-made Boeing CH-47 Chinook helicopter serial 5-4089 to Iraq.
  • On 31 August 1986 an Iranian top-line F-14A Tomcat fighter armed with at least one AIM-54A landed in Iraq. An Iraqi military spokesman identified the pilot and Weapon Systems Officer (WSO) as Major Ahmed Murad Talibi and Captain Hassan Nagafi Habibullah. Upon landing, the aircraft was surrounded by up to 20 US technicians, who took care of it and the defecting pilot, while the WSO who had opposed the defection became an Iraqi POW, later released with other prisoners (the pilot was later killed in Europe). The F-14A along with the aforementioned F-4E were flown to Saudi Arabia by US pilots, who insisted that they first be inspected and repaired by US technicians. After being thoroughly examined, both aircraft were destroyed and buried in the desert.

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