The world’s last operational Boeing 747-100 was destroyed in Israeli airstrikes on Mehrabad International Airport in Tehran last week, ending a 55-year service life for the rare tanker aircraft.
Video footage circulating on social media shows the Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force (IRIAF) KC-747 aerial refueling tanker engulfed in flames on the airport tarmac. Open-source intelligence analyst Babak Taghvaee confirmed the aircraft’s destruction on X, identifying it as the final surviving KC-747 in existence.
Footage of the last Iranian KC-747 tanker burning after an Israeli airstrike on Tehran’s Mehrabad airport last week. pic.twitter.com/DIn9Qnkcsz
— OSINTtechnical (@Osinttechnical) March 12, 2026
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced the Mehrabad strikes destroyed 16 aircraft used by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Quds Force as part of Operation Roaring Lion.
Registry records show the KC-747 carried registration 5-8107 and manufacturer serial number 20082. The airframe was originally delivered to Trans World Airlines (TWA) in 1971 before Boeing acquired it in 1975 and converted it into an aerial refueling tanker for the Imperial Iranian Air Force.
The IRIAF inherited the aircraft after the 1979 revolution and maintained it for decades through cannibalized parts.
Aerial tankers are high-priority targets because they extend fighter jet range and enable long-distance strike missions. Israel destroyed a KC-707 tanker at Mashhad Airport in 2025, marking what was then the farthest Israeli strike into Iranian territory.
Decades of international sanctions have left Iran unable to purchase replacement aircraft from any manufacturer. Satellite imagery of Mehrabad shows large portions of the airfield filled with derelict planes stripped for components to keep the remaining fleet operational.
The destruction represents a permanent loss to Iranian long-range air power projection capability. No factory will produce parts for the 747-100 variant, and no supply chain exists to rebuild what was lost.
