Iran does not expect to receive the Su-35 fighter jets that it purchased from Russia until after the war with the United States and Israel ends, Iranian army spokesperson Brig. Gen. Mohammad Akraminia said in interviews with local publications Tabnak and BitRun. Akraminia explained that preparations for the purchase began several years ago, and Iranian pilots have already completed training. Sources in the Iranian Air Force previously said Iranian authorities themselves had postponed accepting some of the Su-35s out of concern that ongoing U.S. strikes could destroy them.
“The issue of the Su-35 was discussed several years ago, and we carried out the necessary preparations at that time. Pilot training was also completed, and there were no problems with that. These aircraft were supposed to arrive before the war. We will receive them after the war,” Akraminia said. The Iranian army spokesperson added that the country intends to continue purchasing advanced combat aircraft abroad. He said foreign weapons would give Iran access to advanced technology and that the country’s air force would be better equipped once the war ends.
Akraminia did not say how many Su-35s Iran has ordered, which batch he was referring to, or when they were expected to arrive. Russia has not publicly commented on his latest statement.
Su-35 deliveries were promised in 2023
In January 2023, Shahriar Heydari, a member of the Iranian parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, said the Su-35s ordered from Russia would arrive at the beginning of the next Iranian year (which started on March 21). He also said Iran had ordered Russian air defense systems, missile systems, and helicopters. The Insider reported on those plans at the time.
According to information published by the Israeli publication i24NEWS in late 2022, citing intelligence sources, the original deal may have involved 24 aircraft built for Egypt, which later withdrew from the agreement.
In January 2025, Ali Shadmani, deputy chief of Iran’s Armed Forces General Staff, confirmed that Iran had purchased Su-35s from Russia. Reuters noted, however, that the general did not say how many aircraft had been ordered, when they would be transferred, or whether any deliveries had already taken place.
In November 2024, German aviation publication Flug Revue reported that the first two Su-35SEs had been handed over to Iran. According to journalist Babak Taghvaee, the planes were transferred to the Iranian military on Nov. 18 at an aircraft plant in Komsomolsk-on-Amur in Russia’s Far East and were then disassembled and transported to Tehran aboard an An-124 cargo plane. The publication said Iran’s original order had been expanded from 25 to 50 fighters.
However, there has been no independent confirmation that the aircraft arrived in Iran. In April 2025, the International Institute for Strategic Studies said reports of the first two Su-35 deliveries were not supported by satellite imagery or other open-source visual evidence. The institute said its analysts had, however, confirmed by satellite imagery that Algeria had received the same type of fighter from Russia.
In late 2025, Antonio Giustozzi, a senior research fellow at the UK’s Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), wrote in a column for The Insider explaining that documents had emerged indicating Russia and Iran agreed as early as 2022 on the sale of 48 Su-35s. Sources in the Iranian armed forces said preparations to fulfill the contract began that same year, with Iranian pilots and technical personnel undergoing training in Russia. The sources said Tehran was initially expected to receive 24 aircraft from the batch that was previously intended for Egypt, followed by another 24 newly built fighters in 2026-2027.
Iran previously postponed the delivery of 20 fighter jets
In July, Flug Revue reported that around 20 fighters believed to have been built for Iran remained on Russian territory. One reason cited for the delay in delivery was damage to an air base in Hamadan, where the new aircraft were expected to be stationed. According to the publication, Russia expected to have about 30 Su-35SEs ready for Tehran by early 2027.
Then in August 2026, in another column for The Insider, Giustozzi cited sources in the Iranian Air Force who said that Tehran had delayed accepting 20 Russian Su-35s despite Moscow’s readiness to deliver them in the second half of July. According to his sources, Iran feared the U.S. military would destroy the new fighters before they could be moved into underground shelters. Tehran therefore preferred to temporarily leave the aircraft in Russia, even as the equipment necessary to operate and maintain the Su-35s had already begun arriving in Iran.
Iranian military spokesperson Akraminia’s latest statement is consistent with information previously published by The Insider about the delivery delays. However, because the general did not specify how many aircraft Iran is still expecting, it is impossible to confirm whether he was referring to the same batch of 20 Su-35s mentioned by Giustozzi. The status of the two fighters that Flug Revue reported as delivered in 2024 also remains unclear.
The Su-35 is a Russian multirole fighter that Moscow classifies as a “4++ generation” aircraft. It is designed for air-to-air combat and strikes against ground targets. For Iran’s air force, much of which still consists of aging U.S.-made aircraft acquired before the 1979 Islamic Revolution, the Su-35 is expected to become one of the central elements of efforts to modernize its combat aviation.
