Ageing Museum Air Forces: How Do Cuba, Iran & North Korea Compare?

Summary Cuban Air Force, once powerful, now operates only around 7% of its former fleet, mainly with obsolete aircraft. Iran's air force has struggled due to geopolitical shifts and an arms embargo, relying on aging jets, with uncertain operation capacity. Despite having a large number of aircraft, North Korea's air force would likely be ineffective in modern conflicts against advanced rivals.

Cuba , Iran , and North Korea are all noted enemies of the United States and have long had strict arms embargoes placed on them. All three once operated regionally powerful air forces , but their composition today looks more like a flying museum than a modern air force. While arms embargoes have driven some countries to develop their own modern jets (like Israel with the Nesher and Kfir fighter jets ), others like Cuba, Iran, and North Korea have withered over the years.

Cuba During the late Cold War, the Cuban Air Force (the Cuban Revolutionary Air and Air Defense Force) boasted the most powerful air force in Latin America (even more capable than Brazil). But when the Soviet Union collapsed in 1989, the sunset on the Cuban Air Force. Without international aid and faced with an arms embargo and little investment, the Cuban Air Force withered.

During the Cold War, it is estimated that the Soviets supplied Cuba with around 36 MiG-15s, 100 MiG-17s, at least 11 MiG-19s, 270 MiG-21s, over 112 MiG-23s, and 14 MiG-29s. In the 1980s, the powerful Cuban Air Force projected power around the world.