This is the first time an F-35 has shot down a manned fighter jet.
We will probably get more details throughout the day, but on Mar. 4, 2026, the Israeli Defense Forces announced on social media that an F-35I Adir jet belonging to the Israeli Air Force shot down an Iranian Yak-130 over Tehran.
מטוס אדיר (F35I) של חיל האוויר הישראלי הפיל לפני זמן קצר מטוס קרב איראני (YAK-130) מעל שמי טהרן.
זו הפלה הראשונה בעולם של מטוס קרב מאויש על ידי F-35
— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) March 4, 2026
Here’s a translation of the text posted by the IDF on X:
“An Israeli Air Force Adir (F-35I) jet shot down an Iranian combat aircraft (YAK-130) over Tehran skies a short time ago.
This is the world’s first shootdown of a manned fighter jet by an F-35.”
The Yak 130 Mitten
The Yakovlev Yak-130 is a subsonic two-seat advanced trainer originally developed by Yakovlev and Aermacchi (now Leonardo).
Along with the advanced jet trainer role, the “Mitten” (Yak-130 NATO’s nickname), able to replicate the characteristics of Russian Gen. 4 and 4++ combat aircraft, is capable of fulfill Light Attack (LA) and Reconnaissance tasks and it can carry a payload of 3,000 kilograms, including guided and unguided weapons, external fuel tanks and electronic pods.
The LA version, dubbed YAK-131 and equipped with mechanical radar (Phazotron) or Passive Electronically Scanned Array (PESA), is planned to replace the Su-25 Frogfoot.The Russian Air Force has also developed a reconnaissance variant of the Mitten, dubbed Yak-133.
Externally, the Yak-130 bears a significant resemblance with Italian M-346 “Master”, produced by Leonardo Company and already operated by the ItAF (Italian Air force), IAF (Israeli Air Force), RSAF (Republic of Singapore Air Force), Polish Air Force, Hellenic Air Force, Turkmen Air Force and in the future Nigerian. However, the two aircraft are completely different, in terms of avionics, engine, with the Master being considered one of the world’s most advanced trainer, also thanks to a top notch ground based training system.
This is a developing story. We will update it as more details emerge.
