IRIAF post war buildup

In 1991 during the US led Operation Desert Storm against Iraq no Iraqi aircraft was safe, not even the reinforced concrete hangars that protected them from Iranian air strikes in the Imposed War thanks to the new bunker buster missiles carried by coalition aircraft.

Several Iraqi aircraft however flew to Iran to avoid destruction, it is not known whether Saddam himself gave the order and it is curious that they went to Iran of all places considering the fact that Iran was a Iraq's mortal enemy under Saddam Hussein, the aircraft included:


Former Iraqi Air Force Mirage F-1's
source

Mirage F1s, MiG-25 Foxbats, MiG-21 Fishbeds, MiG-27s, MiG-29 Fulcrums, Su-20s, Su-22M Fitters, Su-24MK Fencer-Ds, Su-25 Frogfoots, MiG-23s and a smaller number of Il-76s transport planes.

Iran seized these claiming them as reparations for the Imposed War and several examples are still seen flying today, while at the post war time the IRIAF was partially rebuilt to bigger numbers from the Iraqi Aircraft, MiG-29 fighters and Su-24 bombers from the Soviet Union and F-7M and FT-7 fighters from China.