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Air Forces comparison: Flag of Iran Iran vs Flag of Iraq Iraq

Iran operates 666 active military aircraft vs 393 for Iraq.

AIRS (Air Inventory Rating of Strength) Index face-off Full ranking →
Roundel of Iran IranWorld #30 12.8
AIRS Index / 100

Iran leads on 4 of 6 categories

Roundel of Iraq IraqWorld #39 10.2
  • 255 Combat aircraftweight ×50 · generation 53
  • 168 Helicoptersweight ×10 · era 205
  • 94 Transportweight ×10 25
  • 6 Special missionweight ×8 7
  • 23 UAVsweight ×10 4
  • 120 Trainersweight ×1 99
Iran Iraq Bars: weighted contribution to the AIRS Index (airframes × category weight; combat and bombers by generation tier, helicopters by era; the enabler, armament and availability multipliers apply on top) · figures: active airframes at each side's latest inventory year · Methodology
Key figures as of 2026
Iran Iraq Ratio
Official name Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force Iraqi Air Force
Active aircraft 666 393 🇮🇷 1.7×
Aircraft on order 0 37 🇮🇶
Combat aircraft 255 53 🇮🇷 4.8×
Combat share of fleet 38.3 % 13.5 % 🇮🇷 2.8×
Aircraft types in service 39 27 🇮🇷 1.4×
Main supplier United States · 53 % United States · 40 %
Show full breakdown · 5 more rowsHide the 5 extra rows
Helicopters 168 205 🇮🇶 1.2×
Transport aircraft 94 25 🇮🇷 3.8×
Special-mission aircraft 6 7 🇮🇶 1.2×
Trainers 120 99 🇮🇷 1.2×
UAVs 23 4 🇮🇷 5.8×
Backbone aircraft most numerous in service
🇮🇷 IranF-4 Phantom II ×61F-5E Tiger II ×48CH-47 Chinook ×43
🇮🇶 IraqMi-8 Hip ×47Bell 407 ×37F-16 Fighting Falcon ×34
Fleet evolution · Iran
Fleet evolution · Iraq
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Frequently Asked Questions

Which country has more military aircraft, Iran or Iraq?
Iran has more military aircraft with 666 active aircraft compared to Iraq's 393, a difference of 273 aircraft.
Which air force has more combat aircraft, Iran or Iraq?
Iran has more combat aircraft with 255 fighters and attack aircraft compared to Iraq's 53.
Which country has more military helicopters, Iran or Iraq?
Iraq operates more military helicopters with 205 compared to Iran's 168.
Which air force has more transport aircraft, Iran or Iraq?
Iran has more transport aircraft with 94 compared to Iraq's 25.
How do the Iran and Iraq air forces compare in size?
Iran's air force is 1.7 times larger than Iraq's in terms of total active aircraft (666 vs 393).
Which country has more aircraft on order, Iran or Iraq?
Iraq has 37 aircraft on order compared to Iran's 0.