Summary
Lieutenant-general Nader Jahanbani (1928–1979) was the deputy commander of the Imperial Iranian Air Force and founder of the Golden Crown aerobatic team. A graduate of the U.S. Air Force Air War College, he was arrested by revolutionary forces on 12 February 1979 and executed on the rooftop of the Refah School in Tehran on 13 March 1979 after a closed Revolutionary Tribunal under Sadegh Khalkhali. He is widely regarded as the highest-ranking officer of the Iranian armed forces executed in the post-revolutionary purges.
Career
Born in Tehran in 1928 to an aristocratic family — his father had served as a cavalry general under the Qajar and Pahlavi dynasties — Jahanbani trained as a fighter pilot in the United States and graduated from the U.S. Air Force Air War College. He returned to Iran and rose rapidly through the IIAF, founding the Golden Crown aerobatic squadron in 1958 and being promoted to lieutenant-general and deputy commander by the early 1970s.
The Imperial Iranian Air Force
Under Jahanbani’s deputy command, the IIAF became one of the largest and most capable air forces in Asia, operating F-4 Phantoms, F-5 Tigers and F-14 Tomcats. He personally trained hundreds of Iranian pilots — many of whom would later defend the country in the 1980–88 Iran-Iraq War despite the purges that had killed their teacher.
Arrest and execution
On 12 February 1979, the day after the collapse of the Shah’s government, Jahanbani was arrested. He was held at the Refah School in central Tehran, which Sadegh Khalkhali had converted into a Revolutionary Tribunal and rooftop execution site. On 13 March 1979, after a closed proceeding, he was convicted of "corruption on earth" and "warring against God" and shot by firing squad on the school’s rooftop. He was 50 years old.
Significance
Jahanbani was the highest-ranking officer of the Shah’s armed forces executed in the post-revolutionary purges. Photographs of his body, alongside the bodies of generals Mehdi Rahimi, Reza Naji and Manouchehr Khosrowdad, appeared in the international press and became defining images of Khalkhali’s tribunals. His death is documented in Amnesty International’s 1980 report on Iran.
Frequently asked questions
Who was Nader Jahanbani?
A lieutenant-general of the Imperial Iranian Air Force and founder of its Golden Crown aerobatic team.
When was Nader Jahanbani executed?
He was shot on the rooftop of the Refah School in Tehran on 13 March 1979 after a closed Revolutionary Tribunal.
Who ordered his execution?
The Revolutionary Tribunal of Sadegh Khalkhali, the cleric appointed by Ayatollah Khomeini to head the new revolutionary courts.
Why was Nader Jahanbani executed?
He was convicted of "corruption on earth" and "warring against God" — generic charges used against most senior officers of the Shah-era armed forces in 1979.
How many Iranian generals were executed in 1979?
Dozens of senior officers of the Imperial Iranian Armed Forces were shot in the first months after the revolution; Jahanbani was the highest-ranking air force officer among them.
Sources
- Amnesty International — Iran briefing, 1980
- Encyclopaedia Iranica — Jahanbani family
- Abbas Milani, Eminent Persians
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