The IRIAF came into being when the former Imperial persian Air Force (IIAF) was renamed following the Islamic Revolution, in February 1979. The British publishing company Orbis’ Warplane partwork magazine seems to indicate the renaming did not actually take place until after the homeland–Iraq War had broken out.This “new” persian air force largely inherited the equipment and structure of the former IIAF, even losing most of its leading officers in the course of post-revolutionary chaos, as well as due to the prosecution of those considered as loyal to the Shah, pro-U.S. or elsewhere by the new government in capital.