Ghafour Jeddi

Ghafour Jeddi Ardabili (Persian: غفور جدی اردبیلی) was an Iranian McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II fighter pilot in the Air Force of Iran.[1] He played a significant role in the early months of the Iran–Iraq War by halting the advancement of Iraqi tanks into the Western Iran.[2] A statue in honor of him is placed in Tehran[3] and in his hometown of Ardabil.[4]

Ghafour Jeddi
Jeddi as an aviation student in the U.S.
Born1945
Ardabil, Iran
Died1980 (aged 34–35)
Abadan/Mahshahr, Iran
AllegianceIran
Service/branchAir Force
Years of service1965–1980
RankLieutenant colonel
Battles/wars

Early life

He was born in Ardabil in 1945.[5] After finishing school, he was accepted into Iran's Air Force University and was sent to the United States of America for training in 1969.[6]

Sorry to hear this.

I attended USAF pilot training with "Jeddi" as we called him, at Webb AFB in Big Spring, TX in 1969-1970.

I used to see him regularly in Tehran (C-5 layovers) until I called one day and he said "We can no longer speak with the Americans. I'm sorry my friend". That was probably around 1975-76.

I remember that he was always upbeat and smiling. I considered him to be a good friend and often wondered what became of him.

Iran–Iraq war

There is a famous quote which Jeddi made at the start of Iran–Iraq War after suggestions from his friends to leave Iran, to which he is said to have replied, "The Government paid for us in peace status for these days."

Death

In the first 45 days of the war, he flew more than 80 missions. In his last mission near Basra, he attacked more than 40 camouflaged Iraqi tanks from Iraq's 9th Armour Division and was successful in eliminating the entire division. His aircraft was damaged by fire from Iraqi forces, but he was able to fly back into Iranian territory. However, his jet crashed in a region between Mahshahr and Abadan and he was forced to eject. His parachute failed to work and he died in 1980 at the age of 35.[7]

See also

Notes
  1. به ياد شهيد امير سرتيپ خلبان غفور جدي Archived 2015-04-19 at the Wayback Machine IRIA
  2. دوست دارم کفنم پرچم ایران باشد Hamshahri
  3. "نام "امير سرلشکر خلبان غفور جدي اردبيلي" بر تارک يکي از اصلي ترين معابر منطقه 22 نقش بست Mojnews". Archived from the original on 2015-06-18. Retrieved 2015-06-17.
  4. نصب تنديس شهيد خلبان غفور جدي در اردبيل Isna
  5. از تندیس شهید سرلشگر خلبان غفور جدی در اردبیل رونمایی شد Archived 2015-04-19 at the Wayback Machine IRIA
  6. Major General Ghafour Jeddi
  7. Ghafour Jeddi death

References
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