Iran is reportedly building new copies of the Saeqeh fighter, a reverse-engineered version of the U.S. F-5. But most of the fleet — including Russian-built Su-24s and MiG-29s; Mirage F.1s from France; Chinese J-6s and F-7s; and F-4s, F-5s and F-14s acquired from the U.S. — is 1960s- and ’70s-vintage. The newest foreign fighters in Iranian service are former Iraqi planes flown to safety in Iran during the U.S.-led aerial onslaught in 1991.

Iran acquired 32 F-4Ds along with 180 F-4Es from the U.S. starting in 1970. (The F-4D carries only missiles and bombs; the later F-4E is fitted with a 20-millimeter gun.) Accidents and losses during the war with Iraq in the 1980s steadily reduced the Phantom force to just 10 F-4Ds and 18 F-4Es, according to Flight Global‘s 2013 warplane database; the U.S. embargo following the revolution led to a shortage of spares that curtailed flying hours for the surviving jets.

It wasn’t until the early 2000s that Tehran made serious investment in the F-4s, as detailed by Babak Taghvaee in the latest issue of Combat Aircraft magazine. The first step was to repair the planes’ existing systems. In March 2010 the state-owned Iranian Aircraft Industries began upgrade work on the first F-4D, replacing the wiring and, with the help of Chinese technicians, adding new Chinese-made radar, radios, flat-screen displays and moving map with embedded GPS.

The updated F-4D flew for the first time in February; testing of the new systems is ongoing. Further planned updates include a new Chinese Head-Up Display, radar warning receiver, chaff and flare dispensers and PL-7 infrared- and PL-12 radar-guided air-to-air missiles.

The enhanced F-4s are slated to remain in service until at least 2025.

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